Gangster Hearts
by Xed14thKey
Summary: Two elite, enemy gangs rule the streets of Destiny Islands. Can a Romeo of white and a Juliet of black find love amidst the hate? --RoXed, Org 14 vs. Disorder-- --RATED FOR GANG VIOLENCE/THEMES--
1. Gangster's Paradise

The streets of Destiny Islands weren't home to anyone.

By day, they were a wasteland of pure nothing. Run-down and abandoned buildings lined the roads, bleak and sulking as they crumbled apart with time. Upon the worn tar of the roads lay streams of garbage and shards of dirty, broken glass; a perfect reflection of the sorry state people lived in these days. The skies were dull and thick with a tinge of grey, the dreary heavens doing no good for those who lived under it.

And the people…the people were horrible.

No one was truly happy. I mean, sure, a smile might appear every once and a while, but no one was truly satisfied with their life. Laughs were rare and kind words were almost extinct. There was very little love, and any love would die rapidly.

Everyone was either sad, or angry. Everyone was hateful. And everyone was scared.

By day, they streets were pitiful.

But by night the streets were a battleground.

The two worst gangs ever known ruled Destiny Islands. There was not a soul who was ignorant to this. The taggings, the symbols, the graffiti…the signs were everywhere. Dominance was fought for in every way possible.

There was the Organization: they donned black bandanas and black numerals etched into the backs of their necks. They hung out on the east side of the island. Their leader Xemnas was strong, stern, and fair. He respected the code of the streets greatly, and made sure his thirteen followers did as well. He was an idealistic man, even if some of his ideas caused others to believe he may be faintly insane.

And there was The Disorder: they wore white bandanas and white numerals burned into the backs of their necks. They were located on the west side of the island. Their leader Xradenom was cold, cruel, and uncaring. She demanded the respect of her twelve followers and they gave it to her…or else. She only cared about one thing and one thing only: absolute control. Rules wouldn't even hold her back from that.

Both gangs were hostile and violent towards each other. Night and day, the sounds of intense fighting would echo off the barren buildings, and their shouts and curses could be heard for hours down the blocks. It was because of this that they avoided seeing each other. But every second not spent in each other's presence was another second used to plan the other's downfall.

The people lived in fear of the aggression and the brutal truth that one day the fights would get out of hand and someone innocent would be hurt.

But some things are simply inevitable.

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**And there is the prologue to our story. A little boring, I know, but I promise the second chapter will be a lot more exciting. :)**

**Note: Xradenom is my OC, and is the Heartless of Xed.**


	2. The First White Meeting

""_Two gangs, both alike in dignity,_

_In troubled Destiny Islands where we lay our scene, _

_From a legendary grudge they break to new hostility,_

_Where criminal blood makes criminal hands unclean._

_From the belligerence of these two foes_

_A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life;_

_Whose unforeseen heartbreaking overthrows_

_Do with their death destroy their comrades' strife._

_The fearful course of their death-marked love,_

_And the continuance of their comrades' rage, _

_Which, but these children's end, never could fade,_

_Is now the storyline of this stage. _

_The story if you with patient eyes attend, _

_The tale once unclear, my toil shall strive to mend.""_

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_"Get back up, you worthless excuse for breath."_

_The world was spinning for the fifteen-year-old. His mind was in a hazy torrent of pain and dizziness as he struggled to push himself to his feet. In the back of his thoughts he kept asking himself why did he endure this…why did he want to join in the first place? _

_He bit his lip to stop himself from screaming out as his tired body writhed inwardly in pain. He was bleeding from various cuts and gashes all over his body. And the blood that couldn't escape littered his frail, beaten form with large, ugly bruises. Luckily, he had no broken bones, which surprised him very much. At the rate they had been going, he was sure they'd damage him permanently, at the very least._

_Finally, he rose to his feet weakly, nearly falling over immediately but he held onto a nearby brick wall for support. As soon as he was up a fist was slammed into his face, knocking him back down to the ground with force. He groaned as he felt slick blood pass over his cheek._

_He was then pushed onto his stomach, in which he couldn't help but wince at the contact between his bruised ribs and the rough, ragged street. Suddenly, a searing, burning pain was pressed into his neck, causing him to scream out. It was pressed harder into his soft skin, making him writhe in agony. After what seemed like hours the hot brand was removed, and he struggled to catch his breath in uneven gasps. _

_The leader smirked, satisfied._

_"Welcome to The Disorder, Roxas."_

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He traced over the burn marks gingerly, making out the numerals 'XIV' that were pressed deeply into his skin.

That had been a little under a week ago.

Roxas ran a hand through his spiked blonde mass of hair, and looked down at the sidewalk he was seated on. His strong desire to join The Disorder still mystified him. True, he may've been a high school drop out, a smoker, a rebel, and pretty much every parent's nightmare, but he wasn't a very violent kid. He avoided fights when he could, really. But when they did come along and he just happened to get shoved into the middle, he'd fight like a pro and knock them all out before he was even touched. It was no wonder why his best friend asked him to join his gang.

But why the boy actually agreed was another story altogether…

"Yo Roxas!"

The boy looked up to see the aforementioned man walking over. He responded, "Hey Axel."

Axel was an interesting person, about 22 years old. He was as thin as stick and pretty pale, giving him a sickly, vampiric appearance that girls just fell in love with for some reason. His eyes were a striking sea green color, which contrasted sharply with his bright red, severely spiked back hair. Under his eyes he had two brownish diamond-shaped marks. If anyone asked about them, he'd totally shut down. But everyone knew what they meant anyways, so no one had to ask.

The lanky man sat down next to his younger friend. "What's happenin' with you?"

"Not much." Roxas said. "Do we have a meeting today?"

"Yea. The Boss has plans for getting control of that old court down town. You know the one, right?"

The boy nodded. The court he was talking about was an old basketball court. However, out of all the courts on Destiny Islands, it was the most central in respects to each of the gangs' locations. Control of that court would mean a better watch on each other without looking overly suspicious.

Axel plucked a cigarette out of his pocket and lighted it. He inhaled it deeply and held it before releasing the thick smoke. He looked at Roxas. "Want one?"

He nodded, "Yea." The redhead gave him a cig and lit it for him. The two sat there for a while, smoking their cigarettes in silence as they watched old beat up cars speed down and up the road. They checked out any of the women that strode down the street to pass the time, whistling and making crude comments and earning themselves filthy looks from the ladies.

The skies faded from light grey to dark grey to even darker grey with faint, twinkling stars before they knew it, which signaled it was about time to go see their gang members. They flicked their lifeless cig butts at the ground without a care, and walked off into the dark, twisting alleys of downtown D.I.

000

"You two are late."

"Yea, yea, whatever. It don't matter." Axel replied, waving the man off nonchalantly.

The members of The Disorder were waiting for the two in their private alley, a closed off area that had easy access to the rest of the winding alleys throughout the island. A few trashcans were scatted about the meeting area, a small, controlled fire lit within each to help illuminate the dark alleyway.

The man that Axel had waved off didn't exactly appreciate the disrespect. He glared at Axel and growled, "Be on time, #hithead."

The man giving them a hard time was Brixag, who was probably one of the sternest of the gang alongside a few others. Brixag was a heavy drinker who knew how to hold his liquor and hold it well. He was constantly in a serious mood, and didn't like to be bothered with. He was a pretty old guy, too; he had long, grey hair streaked with thinning black strips tied into a ponytail. His eyes were deep and scary, their menacing gold color cutting through anyone and anything. The scar over his cheek and the eye patch didn't help much, either.

Axel was about to snap rudely at him when his younger friend stopped him. "We're sorry, Brixag. It won't happen again." Roxas assured the man. The drinker grunted and walked back to the spot where he was previously. The blonde looked around and realized the leader was missing. He turned to another of his friends and asked, "Where's Xradenom?"

The woman whom he had asked was Ralexen, a kind, timid, and sweet person who was rather new to the gang like he was. She had black hair that was slicked back with the exception of two antennae like pieces sticking out and to the sides. She also had bright gold eyes that reflected her friendly personality. He had asked her because, although the leader never thought much of anyone, the two were the only females in the gang and they had a somewhat close 'relationship', if you could call it that.

The girl looked up at Roxas and said, "I'm not sure…she went off to take care of something this afternoon." She looked down, feeling bad. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of anymore help…"

"Aww, don't say that Ralexen!" the man who was sitting right next to her said, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer. "I'm sure you were a great help! Right Roxas?"

The blonde smiled and nodded. "Right, Xenzio."

Xenzio was a man who had feminine traits and interests, like his love to shop, but was certainly a very friendly person. He had pale blonde hair with pale orange highlights mixed in that fell over the side of his face and concealed his eye. His amber eyes shone with compassion for others, and he always had a smile on his face. He and Ralexen had been boyfriend and girlfriend for quite some time, and Roxas found it very sweet.

Ralexen smiled a little. "Okay…thanks, Xenzio."

The man smiled and kissed her cheek. "Anytime."

Axel made gagging noises, totally disgusted by the level of sweetness, and the fifteen year old elbowed him in the ribs to get him to stop.

"So everyone is here now."

Everyone knew that cold voice, and turned their heads in the direction from which it came from.

Standing there was Xradenom, a rather young girl of about fifteen years old. She had long, wavy blonde hair that fell a little short to her mid-back and cold, pale grey eyes that had a flicker of undying anger in them. Everything about her seemed cruel and uncaring. Her posture, her presence, her expression, everything. Her lips were set in a perpetual frown, and her eyes were fixated in an everlasting glare.

"We have much to discuss." She said simply, and all the other members gave her their undivided attention. She was one person that you did NOT want to anger, or even annoy.

As she went over the plan in a quick and efficient manner, Roxas couldn't help but gaze at the girl longingly. The boy had taken an instant liking to her despite her cold, evil disposition. Xradenom was an intelligent, strong being who wasn't afraid to take charge. She didn't take #hit from anyone, and he admired her for it. On top of all that, he found her absolutely stunning and beautiful.

"Psst, Roxas!"

A hissed whisper snapped the boy out of his trance and he looked over at the owner of the whisper, Axel. The redhead snickered and smirked at his friend.

"Getting a piece of that eye candy, I see?"

Roxas blushed angrily. "Shut up, Axel!"

"Axel. Roxas."

The two looked over at Xradenom, who was glaring back at them.

She said, "Shut the #uck up."

The two murmured their acknowledgements, and went back to listening quietly. Though, Roxas sighed inwardly, sadly, as he continued to gaze at the leader for a little longer.

_It's too bad she'll never like me back…_

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**Done the second chapter at last!**

**It's been a while since I've written proper full-length chapters for a story, so please forgive my lateness. (gives all her readers cookies)**

**Also, I think I'm going to do Chapter Previews for this story, like I did for **Bring Me To Life**. So here we go:**

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**Chapter 3 Preview:**

"Roxas, man, maybe its just time for you to move on. Find another girl, y'know?"

"This is our court, so back off!"

"Make us, #uckers!"

"I think this can be settled with a quick fight."

Roxas gave his opponent a strange look. Who _was_ this guy?

000

**Until next time, ya'll!**


	3. Black and White Clash

"Roxas, man, maybe its just time for you to move on. Find another girl, y'know?"

The sun beat down faintly on the duo as they trudged down the sidewalk, kicking stray rocks, glass, and litter as they went along. Roxas was feeling particularly down this morning, his thoughts revolving around Xradenom. He couldn't seem to get the girl out of his thoughts. He wanted her so badly, so very badly, but he knew all too well that she would never like him period, and definitely not in the way that he liked her. It was a dilemma that weighed down his mood and depressed him. He hated not being able to get what he wanted.

"I know I should, but…" The teen said, looking up into the hazy sky. "I could never find another person like her. Ever."

Axel waved him off. "Well, you're gonna have to. She's not gonna like you. Hell, she doesn't like anyone." He plucked a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. "Want one?"

"No thanks."

"Suit yourself." He brought the cig to his lips and breathed in, savoring the feel of it. He breathed out, and watched the smoke go upwards. "So…what're you gonna do?"

The blonde ran a hand through his spiky hair. "I don't know, man." He sighed. "I guess…I'll just have to move on…"

The man chuckled, and swung his free arm around the boy's shoulder. "That's the spirit! We'll find you some other chick to like! One hotter than the boss!"

The boy smiled half-heartedly. "Yeah, sure…"

000

Loud, unruly sounds filled the air as the two came closer to their destination.

Various curses and filthy words could be heard clearly, along with angry yelling and horrid insults.

Axel smirked. "Looks like we're late for the party…" He flicked his dead cigarette butt at the cracked sidewalk and ran towards the noises.

Roxas hesitated, unsure of what was going on. But nevertheless, he ran after his friend and towards the commotion.

Gathered on the hot, blacktop of the basketball court was a rabble of people, all angry, *issed, and annoyed. Some hid their frustrations well; others did not. But the difference in bandanas, some wearing white and others wearing black, made the situation all too clear:

Both gangs, The Organization and The Disorder, had both arrived at the same time.

And both wanted control of the court.

"This is our court, so back off!" A man named Luxord with very short, white blonde hair and goatee shouted angrily, with a heavy British accent. His icy blue eyes gleamed crazily in the sunlight.

"Make us, *uckers!" Nevex, and aged, angry-looking man with lackluster grey-blue hair and furious gold eyes. He lunged at the man, the latter gritting his teeth.

"Nuck if you buck, mate!"

The quarreling only got worse, and soon everyone was dragged into it.

"Geez…" Axel commented to Roxas, "these people are nuts…"

The boy nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, the loud crack of a gun went off.

Everyone shut up immediately and looked around, shocked deeply. But there was no body lying on the ground, and no blood. Just Xradenom, standing there with a smoking white handgun held to the air. A faint, satisfied smirk set upon her face, pleased that she managed to shut them all up.

"You are in violation of the code, Xradenom."

Everyone turned to see a tall, tanned man striding towards the group slowly with dark silver hair that aged him further. His burnt amber eyes held strength tainted with a very faint something, though no one could tell what it was.

"Code?" Roxas whispered to his friend, raising an eyebrow. Not taking his eyes off the scene, Axel nodded.

"Yeah. Gangs' gotta have rules, right?" he answered. The blonde turned back to the confrontation.

"I did not shoot anyone, if you have noticed." The girl replied simply. "I merely shot into the air."

The man grunted. "That is putting a strain on the rules."

"I am well aware of the rules, Xemnas." She put her gun away. "But I believe we have a more important matter to discuss."

"Indeed."

It was strange, watching them converse. The air was thick, and tense, so tense that a knife could not cut through it. Their words sounded relaxed, in an oddly tight, edgy way. Each strove for the sharper tongue, the sharper wit, the last word… Neither wanting to be shown up by the other. It was like a dance for domination…and both were quite talented.

Roxas found his mind wandering, so he tuned back in to the conversation.

"I think this can be settled with a quick fight." Xemnas offered. "One of your members against one of mine. Winner obtains the court for their gang. And the decision shall be final."

"It's a deal." Xradenom looked over at the blonde, standing on the sidelines.

Roxas could feel himself blush faintly. Even though she had this quiet-but-deadly threat in her eyes, he loved it when she looked at him. It made him feel all warm and special companion noticed the ogling look he held and elbowed him to cut it out. It worked.

"Roxas." She called, "Get over here." Her command was harsh, and he rushed over. She turned back towards the man. "Who will fight against him?"

Xemnas stepped out of the way and beckoned behind him. "Xed will."

The first thing he noticed were her eyes.

They were pale grey, like Xradenom's, but with flecks a gold imbedded in them.

After that, the rest of the picture filled in for him.

She was about Roxas' age, a little under his height, with long red-brown hair that concealed the right side of her face and fell to about her mid-back. She was on the thin side, and pretty pale. And the perverse section of his mind couldn't help but note she had a pretty nice rack.

He narrowed his eyes in confusion. She didn't seem like the fighter type. She didn't seem like the type to be in a gang, really. But the presence she gave off made him wonder if there was more to her than met the eye.

Afterall, if he picked her, out of all the stronger, bigger members, then there must be something special about her…

He locked his sky blue orbs with her smoky ones, as if to try to read her.

Just who _was_ this girl?

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**And finally, the next chapter comes out :) I promise things will get more exciting next chapter. Fight scene, yay!**

**Chapter 4 Preview:**

God she was FAST.

"C'mon, Roxas! Don't let a girl beat you!"

"Get him, Xed! Kick his *ss!"

He fingered the knife in his pocket. It'd be so easy to finish this.

There'd be hell to pay for, tonight…

**And that's that :D See ya'll next chapter!**


	4. Battle Without Honor

_The way he looked at her…so interested, so curious…so…_

Xradenom glared hard. "Roxas! You had BETTER not lose this court or I will shove my foot up your *ss!!"

The boy gulped. She was a scary woman. She would probably keep that promise.

The sun, though hazed over by thick dull clouds, beat down upon their heads, stinging his eyes. He had to squint to block out the blazing light, though it did little good. The other's screams and shouts and curses rung muffled through his ears, as the world slowed before him while his heart beat faster and faster. The adrenaline rushed through him, just like it did every fight. He made a fist and relaxed it. His opponent just stood there, motionless.

Then he dashed forward.

He swung out with a balled fist, ready to hit her square in the face. But she side stepped him. He stopped, stumbling a little, and swung out again. She dodged again. He tried to strike, and she moved out of the way.

God she was FAST.

This time, the girl struck out, aiming for his stomach. He quickly caught her fist in his hand, tightly, and punched her across the face. A dull, painful throb ebbed strangely at his heart. Perhaps the prospect of hitting a girl bothered him. But no matter what it was, he had to suck it up and keep fighting.

And suddenly, his breath was knocked out of him and he doubled over in pain.

While lost in his thoughts, she had broken away from his grip and kicked him in the stomach. Hard. He could even taste a little blood in his mouth.

"C'mon, Roxas! Don't let a girl beat you!"

The teen could barely hear Axel's voice over the roaring of the rabble encircling them.

A sharp blow to the face sent him stumbling back, sprawled across the ground. He looked up to see Xed standing over him, about to deliver and kick to his stomach. Acting quickly, he grabbed her foot and shoved her away, not knocking her over but throwing off her balance. It was just enough to allow him time to stand up again.

"Get him, Xed! Kick his *ss!"

The girl ran towards Roxas again, poised for another blow. He ran out of the way and created some distance between them. He breathed hard, his lungs desperate for air. Sweat dripped down his face while blood dripped down the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away on his sleeve. He gazed up at her. She seemed less tired than he, but other than a forming bruise across her cheek, she was in better shape than he.

He could hear his comrades' encouraging words (and threats), and he could feel the piercing glare of Xradenom upon him, making a cold shiver run through him. It fueled him with a fiercer determination.

And he ran forth again, as did she.

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The match continued on for some time. Punches were thrown, kicks were released, tackles and pulling and hits were made. Blood was shed, bruises were given. But neither gave up.

The sun was setting; the sky was a different color now, darker, orange-red with hints of purple and pink. All slathered in grey.

Roxas had had enough of this. He was tired and sore and his blood was boiling with anger and frustration.

His weary blue eyes shifted slightly and looked to the blonde girl staring daggers into his head. Something burned in her eyes…something wicked, something devilish. He watched as she slowly and inconspicuously moved her hand down her leg, encouraging him to follow her lead. He knew exactly what she was going for.

His hand moved shakily to the side of his pants, and he fingered the knife in his pocket. It'd be so easy to finish this. Who cares about The Code? About a true gangster's honor? All that mattered was ending this and winning the court. Xradenom would think higher of him. Perhaps she would even accept his feelings and maybe they could start something…

He turned his gaze back on Xed, and drew his knife slowly, flipping the cap off to reveal the smooth, cool, sharp blade. By the widening of her eyes, he knew she saw it. He knew she knew what he was going to do.

And then he charged forward, raising the blade, preparing to slash down.

She quickly grabbed his wrist, trying with all her might to push the knife away from herself. They both shook from the strain, the blade inching forwards and backwards, poising to attack.

"Cheat!" the girl hissed, glaring him down with an intensity that could almost match Xradenom's. Almost.

Around them were increased shouts of anger and disgust, as arguing broke out over the breaking of The Code and The Disorder's 'dirty tricks' so to speak.

The blade inched closer and closer towards the girl. But then she brought up her knee, slamming it between Roxas' open legs. The boy yelped loudly and immediately collapsed, dropping the knife to the hot asphalt under him. He writhed and groaned, shaking from the intense pain as the shock of it all caused his world to spin and grow black and quiet.

There'd be hell to pay for, tonight…

000

He woke to the repeated stomping upon his stomach, curtsey of his very angry gang members.

"You *ucking idiot!"

"You cost us the *amn court!"

"*ucking *itch!"

The blows rained down on him for a while, racking his body with more pain. After a while, they ended, and Roxas weakly pushed himself up to his knees, wincing as new and old cuts bled new crimson.

He watched as Xradenom stood over him. She smacked him across the face unbelievably hard, whacking the breath and sense out of him momentarily, making him see stars. She threw him a disgusted glare and stormed off. The other members followed, some throwing angry looks, some throwing sympathetic looks.

Only one stayed behind, and he kneeled beside the boy, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. "Want one?"

The teen nodded, took one, and they lit up. Taking a deep inhale of the cig, he looked around to see that they were back at The Disorder's hangout. The skies were very dark; it was obviously late at night.

The redhead snickered. "I can't believe she got you down by kneeing you, man…"

Roxas groaned, the pain still there. "I know….Xradey looks *issed as hell…"

"Hell yeah she is." Axel took a smoke, and released it. "You know, that chick was pretty fine."

"Who?"

"That girl you were fighting. What's her name…Xed?"

"Oh…" Roxas stared at the ground, moving a chunk of broken glass around with his foot. "She wasn't too bad looking."

"Rox, she rivaled the Boss." He smirked. "And don't think I didn't catch the way you were lookin' at her. You were checking her out, weren't you?" He nudged his friend, his grin going wider as the teen blushed faintly, mostly in embarrassment.

"I was not! I was just…studying her moves…"

"Bullsh*t."

"Ah, screw you, Axel…" he finished his cig and stamped the butt out on the ground. After a long moment of silence, "Maybe…I'll go see her again. Should probably apologize for the knife thing…"

"Yeah. That was cold." The redhead flicked his dead cig to the wall. "That ain't right, pulling a knife. You know The Code."

"Yeah, yeah, I know…" The blonde stood up slowly, as to not agitate his wounds. There was always tomorrow to go find her. But for now, sleep sounded amazingly good to him, and he limped off to his room.

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**SOOOO Sorry for the long update D: I got side tracked…but now I have a new method for writing the chapters and I hope it'll make things go smoother.**

**Chapter 5 Preview:**

She couldn't get him off her mind…

"I don't get this. Why are we fighting? Why the division?"

"Even gangsters like us need rules, too. That's why The Code was made."

"The Code?"

"You don't EVER break The Code. Or hell breaks loose."

"Just…stay away from them. From him. They're not good people."

What about us?

**See ya'll next chapter :)**


	5. Gangsters Need Rules Too

Back at their headquarters, The Organization was in celebration of their latest victory. Drinks were passed around and swallowed in earnest, as laughing and excited chatter echoed off of the old, mostly bare walls of the building's lobby. Sometime ago, they had seized the abandoned apartment complex before The Disorder could get their hands on it. While most of the rooms were in awful shape, quite a few were rather decent, and they made good places to relax or even live in. All meetings, though, were to be held down in the foyer.

Xemnas stood up from his seat, raising a hand to signal everyone to be quiet. After only a minute or so, the conversations died down and all eyes and ears were focused on the man.

"Firstly," he said, in a deep, resounding voice, "I would like to say well done to our newest member's success this morning. Because of Xedramon, we now have control of a critical point within the vicinity."

He raised his glass, respectfully, as the other members raised theirs, some voicing their congratulations. Her two friends, a young, black haired boy around her age and an older boy with sandy blonde mullet-like hair gave her smiles. She smiled back, half-heartedly. It was nice to be recognized, but her mind was in other places. She couldn't seem to focus on anything but _him_…

She couldn't get him off her mind…

The tanned man droned on for some time, before releasing the members to do whatever they wanted with the rest of their evening. Everyone filed out…except for her. Xed just stayed where she was, seated on the sofa, staring blankly into the untouched cup of beer someone passed her.

"You're awful quiet." The mullet boy sat down next to her, curiosity shining in his jade green eyes. "Something up?"

"It's nothing, Demyx…" she partially lied. In truth, it really was nothing; nothing to him. But it was to her.

Either way, he didn't buy it. "Seriously, what's wrong? You look kinda…confused, or something."

She sat there quietly for a moment. "…who exactly was that kid?"

"Kid?"

"The one I fought today."

"Oh…you mean Roxas." Demyx sighed. "He's part of The Disorder. Just added about a week ago. He's not half bad in fighting."

"Roxas…" she repeated to herself, slowly. " I should probably apologize to him…that was a pretty low blow I laid on him…

"Pssh." Demyx waved the idea off. "He had it coming, with that knife *hit he pulled on you. He's bad news, though. Everyone in The Disorder is." A frown slipped onto the boy's face. "They're all crooks…wicked people. They're real jerks and for a long time they've been pushing our buttons, just threatening to totally screw everything up. You gonna drink that?"

She shook her head and handed him the cup. He took a long drink, before sighing his satisfaction.

"I don't get this. Why are we fighting? Why the division?" the girl asked. "We're all bad people. We've stolen, we've fought, we've hurt…so why are we pitted against each other this way? Can't we all just be one big gang?"

"No can do, chickie."

The two looked up to see Xigbar, a tall man with long, black hair, streaked with silver and pulled into a ponytail stride into the room. His eyes –his good eye, rather—, though golden like some of the others, didn't hold the malice that they did. Instead, they were quite friendly and mischievous.

Xed answered, "And why's that?"

Then man took a seat on the arm of the sofa, reaching over and taking the half-empty cup of beer from Demyx and downing it in one go, ignoring the boy's protests and grumbles. When he was done, he tossed the cup into the trashcan, nearly missing it.

"No one's ever really known just HOW we started it up, but some years back the gangsters of Destiny Islands just got fed up with each other, and split into two different groups. Of the two, The Organization has more…I guess you could call it 'class'…than The Disorder. We're more honest." He smirked. "As honest as gangsters get, anyways…"

"And The Disorder?"

Xigbar frowned. "The Disorder's always been known to be sneaky and dishonest. Their leader, that blonde chick? Yeah, she's a nightmare on stilettos.—"

"A total *itch." Demyx cut in. The man nodded, and continued,

"Anyways, she always tried to find loopholes and excuses to do whatever the hell she wants. And her little gang of lackeys just follow along with her. But there's gotta be limited, y'know? Even gangsters like us need rules too. That's why The Code was made."

The brunette raised an eyebrow. "The Code?"

"Yup." Her young friend chirped in. "It's a bunch of rules that all gangsters have to live by. You don't EVER break The Code. Or hell breaks loose."

"What does the code entail?"

"Well…" Xigbar began counting off on his fingers. "Number One: You don't attack anyone that doesn't attack you. Number Two: Fights, unless specified, are fists-only. No weapons. Which is why we're particularly *issed at Roxas. Anyways, Number Three: No killing. Ever."

A small shiver ran down the girl's spine. She knew that gangs were violent…but she could never imagine having to kill someone…or even be connected to a killing.

The scarred man continued, "Number Four: No Fraternizing with the other gang. That is considered treachery. Number Five: Only the leader may carry a gun. Only then, and no one else."

"Why?"

"Because, Xed, you can't use what you don't have. Shooting is coward. Real gangsters fight with their bare hands, not a bullet."

"Oh…"

"Moving on… Number Six: You do not point a gun at anyone unless one is pointed at you. Number Seven: You do NOT shoot a gun at ANYONE. However, if Number Six is followed, Number Seven won't be a problem. And the final rule, Number Eight: The Code is law. You may not defy the code, ever. And if you do…well, you're in deep *hit."

The three sat in silence for a while, before the man stood up, bid them goodnight, and walked off. Demyx looked over at his companion.

"I'm not happy about the division either…but it just…is. So forget about that boy because now he's your enemy. Just…stay away from them. From him. They're not good people."

The brunette sighed deeply, laying back and looking up at the plain, worn ceiling. Reluctantly, she nodded her agreement. The boy smiled and ruffled her hair fondly, before getting up and walking out.

She sat there for a while, in silence, as the skies outside grew darker and the night descended further, just like her never ending thoughts.

000

**Woot :) **

**REMEMBER THE CODE. It's very important in later chapters.**

**Chapter 6 Preview:**

He couldn't find her anywhere.

The chase was on.

"You got lucky last time. I could've easily beat you, hands down."

"Well then, bring it!"

**Until next chapter!**

**PLEASE review. Reviews are love. They make me happy and that means I'll type faster and update more frequently ^^**


	6. An Unexpected Encounter

The blonde searched everywhere. He couldn't find her anywhere.

To avoid awkward and probing questions from his comrades, Roxas had woken up early that morning, around eight or nine, and wandered the streets of the city for hours, peeking here, peeking there, checking in the shops and the alleys, but with no luck. He didn't dare check The Organization's hangout, in fear he'd encounter one of the other members. He was simply hoping he'd catch her by herself, or with one other person, just so he could quickly apologize and move on with his life.

Fat chance.

000

Today was a hot one. At least 85 degrees, probably more.

Roxas pushed his spiked bangs from his forehead, wiping the forming sweat with his other hand. It had to have been around noon by now, and he still hadn't seen Xed. He looked up at the cloud-tainted sky, silently wondering why they couldn't block the sun's heat as well as it's light. He brought the glass bottle of beer he gripped in his former hand to his lips and took a deep drink, savoring its cool relief. As long as he had stopped walking, he decided to slump down on a nearby doorstep to rest for a bit.

He went over and over again in his mind where he had checked: the bar, the liquor store, the thrift shops, the old truck yard, the alley back ways… but to no avail.

The teen sighed, and was about to give up when he caught a glimpse of a certain brunette, walking on the other side of the street.

"Xed!"

Her head snapped up, and began scanning the area for the source of her name.

Roxas waved his hand, wildly, in an attempt to get her attention. Her eyes caught sight of him, but no more than for a mere second or two. She immediately turned away and kept walking.

"Huh?" The boy was confused. "Hey, wait up!"

She walked _faster._

He threw back the rest of his drink in one large gulp, and tossed the bottle to the ground, standing up. "Come back!"

And then she broke into a run.

Roxas glared. _Why was she running?? _He took off as well, following her at a relatively fast pace. However, she was much faster, forcing him to speed up as well.

The chase was on.

He followed her for a LONG time. They ran down the street, up it, around it, everywhere. Occasionally she looked back to see if he was still following, with something close to fear in her eyes. And when she saw that he was, she'd push herself to keep running (He would've shouted out to her that he only wanted to talk, if only he had the breath for it).

Soon, in an attempt to throw him off, she swiftly ducked into an alley and began running down it, dodging dumpsters and jumping over garbage as she went. Roxas ran after her, the new obstacles now slowing him down along with growing fatigue. His lungs were burning, his legs were on fire, both aching for rest, but his desire to catch up with her ultimately overtook his physical wants.

After many, many twists and turns, Xed found her next path blocked by a high gate. Breathing hard, she looked behind her. He wasn't there, not yet—but she could hear his footsteps growing ever closer. Silently hoping he'd leave her alone, she ran at the gate and, grasping the metal as best she could, began climbing up and over.

Hearing the shaking metal, Roxas followed the sound to where she was. Between ragged, broken breaths, he managed to choke out,

"Wait…wait, don't…go…"

The shock of hearing her voice made her grip slip and her footing fail, and she fell back down to the ground. The brunette turned to face him, backing up as much as possible against the gate as she could. If only she could phase through to the other side…

"L-leave me alone!" she gasped, breathing heavily.

"I just…want to talk!"

"No! Go away!"

He advanced towards her, limping a bit. "Look…I just—"

WHAM!

Roxas reeled back, holding his bruising cheek. Xed withdrew her punch, giving him a hard look.

"I'll screw you over, just like last time!" she threatened, making fists. "Get lost!"

He growled. "You got lucky last time. I could've easily beat you, hands down."

She scoffed. "Well then, bring it!"

Despite his body feeling like cold, tired stone, he lunged forward and slammed her, back first, into the gate. She cringed, but kneed him in the stomach. He narrowly blocked it, and punched her in the face. She returned the punch with one to his chest. He stumbled back, clutching his stinging torso. The girl took the opportunity to rush at him, throwing all her weight (which, wasn't all that much) at him, toppling him over. She tried pinning him to the ground, but he wriggled out of her grip, shoved her off, and pinned _her_ to the ground, successfully. She struggled as well as she could, but he easily overpowered her.

"Get…off!!" She screamed at him, glaring daggers at him.

Roxas glared back. "See? Who's the winner now, huh? HUH?"

"Fine! You are! Now get off!!"

"Not yet! If I let you go, you'll just get up and run and won't even listen to what I have to say! So shut up, stop struggling, and listen!"

With a defiant look in her eyes, she grew quiet and relaxed, breathing hard. Once she had calmed down a little, he relaxed his grip on her...but just barely.

"Look," he started, "I'm sorry about the knife thing." Something in her eyes softened faintly. He continued, "It was *hit of me to pull that. I let the heat of the fight get to me. So…sorry."

She was quiet for a moment, before saying, "…I just don't like knives, okay? I had a bad experience with them…that's why I ran. I thought…you might still be angry about how the fight turned out…"

"Oh…"

"…and sorry about the kneeing thing. That was pretty low."

He grinned a little. "It's fine. Xradenom always said you have to have the balls for this gangster *hit. Apparently mine need some work…"

She chuckled softly, and smiled a little at the joke.

Roxas looked into her pale eyes, which seemed so deep, so layered with many emotions. There was something about her, something enchanting and so alluring to him…it called out to him…

Xed looked into his ocean-blue eyes, just as vast and endless as the real thing. His presence, his aura, it was all so strong, so attractive…it was unlike anything she'd ever encountered…

They shared a quiet moment, just looking the over other. It wasn't passionate, but it wasn't awkward…it just…was. Just a moment in time, a little slower than all others. Their heart beats weren't heard, their breathing went unnoticed, it was just like looking into a still mirror, and being totally and utterly amazed but surprised at the vision looking back at you...

"Hey…" he said, his voice barely audible. Something in her eyes shifted, as if she was snapped out of a trance.

"Huh?"

He cleared his throat, and made his voice stronger. "Hey…do you want to, y'know, go out sometime? Like…on a date?"

Xed was a little surprised. Didn't he know the rules? No fraternizing with the other gang? Didn't that mean anything to him? But, on the other hand, the thought was surely tempting. There was this something about him that drew her to him, and she wanted to see just what that was.

Letting her nerves get the best of her, she looked away from him. "It's getting late…I need to get going…"

Roxas looked up into the sky, to see that the clouds were darkening. "Oh…sorry…" he quickly but hesitantly got off of her, and stood up. She stood up after him. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well…see you around then…"

She nodded. "Yeah…"

The brunette turned, and started to walk out of the alley, from where they had come.

"Oh," she called over her shoulder, "and Roxas?"

He looked up. "Huh?"

A smile that he couldn't see. "Definitely…maybe."

A grin passed onto the blonde's lips, as he watched her walk away into the darkening streets.

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**Ooooh…..could it be amor? ^^**

**We'll just have to wait and see :3**

**Chapter 7 Preview:**

"Roxas, what are you doing here??"

"Come take a walk with me?"

"So, what's your story?"

The blonde bit his lip. Where was she?

"Vexen! I need to talk to you! It's important!"

…oh no…

**See you next chapter :)**


	7. A Walk Under Moonlight

A day or so had passed, and it was evening again.

The sun had (as far as they could tell) just set; the clouds hanging up were streaked and tainted with a dreary version of normal sunset colors. It was still rather hot, but not stiflingly so. However, the few small breezes that chanced through the city were very much welcome.

In the Organization's hangout, Demyx, Kuxir, and Xed were together in the girl's room, chatting carelessly and enjoying themselves.

Her room was very basic: a bed, a window, and a small closet. Not too much space. The walls were covered with her drawings, sketches, and doodles that she did during her free time. It wasn't much, but it was home to her.

The three were talking about the rumored romance between their leader and his right-hand kiss-up, a blue haired gold-eyed scar-faced man by the name of Saix, when all of the sudden the black haired teen went silent, looking around.

"Hey…did you guys hear that?" he asked. The girl and the boy grew quiet, straining their ears to try and detect what their friend was hearing.

_Tap…tap…tap…tap…_

"Yeah…" Demyx said, slowly. He raised an eyebrow. "What _is_ that?"

"It…" Xed said slowly, thinking, "…it sounds like it's coming from the window…"

Kuxir stood up and walked over to the window, opening it with little difficulty. The stupid thing never did stay securely closed. Scanning the dark streets below, his eyes adjusted enough to make out someone standing down there.

"Who's that?" he looked back at his companions.

Xed walked over to the window and looked out. Upon seeing the spiked mass of blonde hair, she recognized him immediately.

"Roxas?" Surprise filled her voice, and her eyes.

He looked up at her, smiling. "Hey, Xed."

"Roxas, what are you doing here??" she hissed, her surprise quickly melting into dread. All it would take would be for someone to come in, or to walk out there, or to hear them…

"Roxas?!" The mullet boy exclaimed, jumping off her bed and squeezing between the two younger teens for a better look.

Kuxir threw Xed a shocked, disapproving look. "What is the meaning of this??"

Roxas called from down below, "I…couldn't really keep my mind off of you…" The teen was glad he was mostly concealed in the darkness. He could feel himself blushing. "So I came by to see you. Come take a walk with me?"

The brunette bit her lip. _Should she…?_

Her friends could see the question in her eyes.

"You're not seriously going with him, are you??" Demyx asked, absolutely shocked. "He's from The Disorder! He's dangerous!"

"He's…he's not like that…" Xed said, trying to defend the blonde. Kuxir crossed his arms.

"If Xemnas catches you, you're in deep *hit!"

"_If _he catches me." She threw a faint smirk at them. "But he won't…now will he?"

The boys exchanged uneasy glances, before turning back to her.

"Xed…" Demyx said, worriedly.

"I'll be fine. I promise." She smiled at him, reassuringly. "I know what I'm doing."

"If you don't come back soon…" Kuxir started, "…we're getting help. We mean it."

The girl smiled brightly, and stepped out of the window, making her way down the fire escape and into the dark jaws of night.

000

As the evening drew on, the pale light of the moon above illuminated the streets surprisingly well. The two teens walked in silence for a while, enjoying the cool of nighttime and the quiet of the city as most of its residents were either inside their homes, or asleep.

Eventually, the girl found the silence to be too silent, and decided to break the ice. "So, what's your story?"

He looked at her, oddly. "…my story?"

"You know…your deal? Like, why're you in The Disorder?" She kicked a piece of glass along the sidewalk, listening as it scraped and slid across the concrete. "You don't seem like a gangster, to be honest."

Roxas raised his arms, locking his fingers behind his neck. "To be honest? I just wanted something to do…it seemed cool to me at first, but when I realized what I just got myself into, it was too late." He grinned faintly. "I mean, it's not totally awful, I've got Axel there with me." He added in quickly, "he's my best friend."

Looking at him, she said, "I feel like there's a 'but' coming on…"

The boy sighed. "Yeah. But…the stuff you have to do…the way you have to act…it's too over-the-top. I mean, I don't get this division *hit they've got going on."

"Me neither. It's pretty stupid."

He smiled a little more. "So, what's your story?"

She looked down. "Well…it was the only thing for me to do. I don't have parents or a job or anything, so that means no place to live. Xemnas saw me steal something, and I guess he was impressed or something because he offered me a place to stay if I joined The Organization. So…I did."

"That's rough…"

Xed shrugged. "Everything worked out, though...well enough, anyways."

The silence returned for some time. Roxas thought for a moment.

"Hey…come with me." He said, turning into an upcoming alley. She looked a bit apprehensive, but he smiled at her. "It's okay. Just trust me, alright?"

She nodded, and with that followed him.

000

"Wow…what a view…"

"I know. It's my favorite place to go to just…get away from it all, y'know what I mean?"

The teens now stood on top of a building, with a great, clear oversee of the entire city. It was located near the center basketball court, more towards The Disorder's side of the Island.

He sat down, near the edge but not on it. Xed followed suit.

"How'd you find this place?"

"I got *issed at Axel over something I can't remember now, and I just…ran. Ran and climbed things. Eventually I got here." He looked out to the skies. "I guess I never really came back down."

Xed smiled. "Who would want to come down?"

He returned the smile. "Exactly…"

Things, once again, became silent, but this time not awkwardly so. They spent a short amount of time, or perhaps a long amount of time, just looking at each other, their eyes locking and never letting go.

"You…you have very nice eyes…" the boy admitted, seemingly trance-like. He watched as a faint but cute blush rose to her cheeks. It made him smile even more.

"You have nice eyes yourself…" she said, returning the compliment shyly.

The space seemed to close in ever so faintly between them, before they realized this and shattered the moment, looking away as the silent air grew once again awkward. The blonde lay back onto the rooftop, putting his hands under his head. "So...uh…" he searched for something to talk about. "What…colors do you like?"

The brunette lay down beside him, turning over on her side to look at him. "I like any color, really. Especially paired with black. You?"

"Blue and tan. And sometimes green."

They smiled at each other, as if a secret had been shared although it hadn't. And somehow, they found more and more things to talk about. Small things, but things nonetheless. And somehow, they two fell asleep accidentally when they ran out of tings to say.

000

Kuxir had been called away to do something for the only woman in The Organization, and ill-tempered, blonde named Larxene.

Leaving Demyx to watch for Xed's return.

Hours had passed. At least two, maybe even three. Another minute that went by increased his worrying more and more.

The blonde bit his lip. Where was she?

More time passed. Then more time passed. Demyx couldn't handle this; Xed could be in serious trouble. He walked out hastily into the hallway, to the first room he could reach: that of the dirty blonde, acid-green-eyed Vexen.

Since his door was always locked, he pounded on the door, rushed. He bit his lip harder. "Vexen! I need to talk to you! It's important!"

He could hear the man moan in annoyance behind the door. "What _is_ it, Demyx?" he snapped.

"It's…its Xed…"

The door unlocked instantly.

000

A drop of water hit her face, arousing her from her sleep.

"Huh…what?" she murmured blearily. More drops fell from the sky. It was drizzling. Rubbing her eyes, she assessed her situation. _Lying on something hard…a rooftop…here with Roxas…_

Here with Roxas!!

Xed sat up quickly. "Darnit! Roxas, wake up!!"

The boy opened his eyes quickly. "What? What??"

"We fell asleep!!" she was beginning to panic. The skies looked darker than before. They must have been out here for hours… "We need to get back before someone comes looking for us!"

They both jumped to their feet, and began their decent down to the streets once again.

000

They ran quickly. The rain was falling harder. They splashed through puddles as they traversed the darkening city streets and alleys as fast as they could. The rain distorted their sight and hearing, disadvantaging them further.

"Wait!" Roxas grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the alley they were about to run out of.

"What—"

"Shhh!"

They grew quiet and, through the hard rain, they could make out a pair of voices, one belonging to a man, and the other to a woman. Though the brunette didn't recognize them, the blonde did.

"*hit…that's Ralexen and Brixag…"

"Who?"

"They're from The Disorder…look, Xed," he said urgently, looking into her eyes, "go back through his alley and make a right, and then keep going until you reach your hangout. I'm going to wait for them to pass and slip out and head back to The Disorder's place. Okay?"

She frowned. "But…Roxas…"

"No buts! Go!"

Hesitantly, she ran off, following his directions. He watched her run, listening to the splashing she made, and when she was completely from his sight and hearing, he slipped out and ran himself.

000

Climbing up the slippery ladder was hard work, but Xed eventually made it back to her window. Prying the broken window open, she pushed it up and slipped back inside, trying to make as little noise as possible.

"Xedramon."

She cringed.

…oh no…

Turning around slowly, she looked over at her shoulder to see the tall, tanned man standing above her, his menacing gold eyes dead fixed on her.

"X-Xemnas…"

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**Drama!**

**Please review…I could use a review to cheer me up :(**

**Chapter 8 Preview**

"What the HELL were you thinking???"

"You better not let Xradenom hear of this."

Tapping at the window.

"Who cares about them? This is about us."

**Until next chapter.**


	8. It's All About Us

**Sorry for the long update, guys. I've been studying for this AP exam, and I've been busy. Hope you'll forgive me ^^**

000000

"What the HELL were you thinking?!" The silver haired man strode towards the girl, his golden eyes alight with fury at her actions.

Frozen in her fright, she found herself stuttering. "I…I-I…"

"Do you not realize what you have done??" He boomed, glaring down at her the way a parent would look upon a disobedient child. "You have broken the code! Fraternizing with the Disorder is strictly forbidden!"

"But—"

"There are no buts! Do you not realize the severity of your actions? This could have been a plot against The Organization. Xradenom could have set this up. He could have killed you!"

"But he didn't!" Xed found her voice, and glared up at the man looming over her. "I'm still alive!" He gaze softened. "Roxas…he's not like the rest of them. He's sweet and nice, he doesn't believe in all this 'gang mess' either!"

Xemnas remained unmoved, his eyes narrowing to slits. "I do not care. The Disorder is our enemy, and I will not place this order into danger that can be easily avoided."

"But Xemnas!" She pleaded, but he held up a hand to silence her.

"Not another word, Xedramon." He hissed. "You will be punished severely if you ever see that boy again. Do I make myself clear?"

She turned her head away, and muttered beneath her breath, "…*sshole…"

The man suddenly grabbed her upper arm and wrenched her close, eliciting a cry of pain from the girl. "DO I make myself CLEAR?" he roared into her ear.

"Yes! God!" She growled, yanking away from his grip and turning on her heel, storming out of her room and down the stair case leading to the main foyer below. On her way out she passed by Demyx, giving the boy a hard-to-read yet clearly upset and hurt look. The teenager could only return it with a pleading and apologetic gaze, which continued as he watched her run out of the door and into the dark night that waited outside.

000

Back at The Disorder's hangout, Roxas strolled in from the rain—soaking wet but beyond elated. He couldn't believe the night he had with Xed! His head was spinning with the still-fresh memories of their conversation. Of her voice, her laugh, her eyes, her smile… He was a bit disappointed they had to end their night so short, but he prayed with all his heart that she had enjoyed his company as much as he had enjoyed hers, and would be looking forward to another night out together.

Upon strolling into the worn abandoned warehouse that most of the gang members (occasionally including himself) called 'home', he saw Axel, Luxord and Brixag, along with a burly orange haired man with chilling cobalt eyes named Lexaeus and a mauve haired man with devious navy eyes named Marluxia huddled around one of the small tables in the room. Undoubtedly, they were playing poker. They usually did at night.

The blonde was the first to greet him. "Hello, mate." He grinned, "Up for a game of cards?"

"No thanks." Roxas' usual response to his nightly offers. "Ax, can you pass me a beer?"

The redhead, seated next to their cooler, pulled a tan can out of the cold box and tossed it to his friend, the latter catching it with no problem. He smirked as he shifted on the sofa, making room for him. "So, are you gonna tell me how it went?" he asked, quite nosily.

"How what went?" Marluxia asked, curiously.

"His date." Axel sneered and elbowed his younger friend in the ribs. Roxas laughed and pushed him away, popping the top of the ring on his beer can with his finger.

"It wasn't a date, really…"

"I didn't know a girl piqued your interests." Luxord grinned, passing out the cards to the men around him. "Who is she?"

"That Organization girl, Xed." Axel answered for him.

The room grew silent, as all movement halted. The blonde let the card in his fingers slip before it could reach the pile to his left. Marluxia stopped shuffling his poker chips closer to his body. Even Brixag and Lexaeus, who were hardly interested in the conversation, stopped sipping their drinks mid-sip.

"…you're kidding, right?" The pink haired man said, in disbelief. Roxas shook his head slowly. "That's absolutely crazy."

"Roxas, you know the code." Brixag snapped sharply. "No getting involved with The Organization."

"Ah, geez, lighten up you fart." The redhead threw an arm around the boy's shoulder. "He can't help who he likes. So lay off, huh?" The blonde diverted his eyes towards his lap where he was flicking the ring on the can to steady his nerves, grateful for the save.

"You had better not let Xradenom hear of this." Luxord went back to dealing cards, a little slower this time. "She won't like this at all."

Roxas nodded. He hadn't planned at all on telling her, or even hinting to her. This was his secret, and he knew that if she ever found out, there'd be hell to pay on his part, and possibly Xed's part. He frowned outwardly. He certainly didn't want to get her in any trouble.

"Look, if you want I can set you two up on a real date." Axel offered, smirking. "Somewhere quiet and dark…with a bed…"

A few of the lighter-hearted men snickered, while the boy flushed and shoved him away. "No way! I can handle this myself!"

"Suit yourself."

Taking a long gulp of his drink, the blonde then decided he'd go back later that night to see her.

000

By now Xed had returned to her room, seeing Xemnas finally left. She still refused to speak to Demyx, who had later confessed to her face about him telling Vexen who told Xemnas, but she planned on forgiving him later. She knew he only cared about her safety.

She was sprawled out on her bed, pale eyes staring up at her blank, cracked ceiling, her mind going over everything that had occurred that night. She found herself smiling on her own. Though shortened, it was a truly wonderful night…

_Tap! Tap! Tap!_

The girl sat up abruptly, turning her head towards the window in which the sharp panging could be heard from. She watched at another small pebble struck against the glass. She held her breath and made her way to her window, silently hoping the person she was hoping for would be down there.

As she pried her window open, she wasn't disappointed.

As dark as it was, she could clearly see the boy grin from the ground.

"Roxas!" she exclaimed in a loud whisper, wanting his ears and his ears alone to hear her. "What're you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you again." He smiled more. "May I come up?"

The girl looked behind her, checking to see her door was closed and locked securely. Turning back, she nodded to him. "But be really quiet, okay?"

Wasting no time, he walked over and grabbed hold of the end of the ladder hanging down stiffly, and made his way up the fire escape. The rusting metal was frigid to the touch and wet from the night's previous rain shower, but he gradually reached his destination.

"I don't think it'd be a good idea for me to go in, though." Roxas stated, crossing his arms and leaning them upon the window sill. It wasn't very high, but high enough that he had to look up to see her. "You know, just in case someone comes in…"

"Yeah…" Xed smiled at him and leaned in a little. "Tonight was really fun, though…" Roxas grinned. But his grin faded as he watched hers slip away. "But…Xemnas found out where I was and that I was with you…"

He could feel his heart catch in his throat.

She could see the disappointment in his eyes. "And…he's forbidden me to see you again…"

"The Disorder…" he looked away, unconsciously towards the direction from where he came. He clenched his fist, tightly, his nails digging into his tanned palms. "…they say that we shouldn't be together. That it's breaking the code."

"That's what he said to me, too."

He looked back at her, the distress in his ocean blue eyes replaced with anger and determination. She was taken aback by his sudden change of heart, but found herself unable to look away.

He said, the resolve full and passionate in his voice, "Well, *uck them all. I like hanging out with you, and I think we could be good friends…and who the *uck are they to tell us no? This isn't their life, this is ours!"

"Roxas…" The strength in his words was touching and brave.

"*amnit, I say we do what we want! This is about us, and only our happiness should matter." He felt a strong desire to reach out and touch her hand, but he held back. "You make me happy." He flushed immediately, the passion inside him calming down and being replaced with embarrassment he desperately attempted to suppress.

_Roxas…_

"So…let's just do what we want…" He smiled at her, his eyes shining. "And right now, I want you to come with me and we'll walk around together. What do you want?"

The brunette was stunned. She was never really a person to strongly rebel again 'society' (if you could call their world that), but seeing the boy's determination and willpower made a strange feeling arise within her. Roxas…made her happy too. She didn't know just quite why, or how, but he just did. Even though they had only known each other so shortly, there was just this complex attraction that just…drew her to him. She never was a believer in love at first sight, but perhaps this was something different…or maybe the start…

She smiled at him, her eyes shining as well with the same passion that his had. "I want to go on a walk with you, too."

And with that, she turned off the lights and stepped outside of the window, and the two made their way down the ladder for the second time that night, but hopefully not for the last time.

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**Aww….cute :)**

**I don't think I'm going to do Chapter Previews anymore, unless ya'll want them. So let me know, okay?**


	9. The Lips That Aren't Sealed

**Gah, I PROMISE after school lets out I'll be updating more regularly. The last two weeks are all finals -_-**

**Oh, and many of you are asking as to why Kuxir is in The Organization, why Axel and Roxas are in The Disorder, etc. Thing is, Xed and Roxas are both in The Organization. And if I kept things like that, there wouldn't be this forbidden love plot thing going on, now would there? So, I moved Roxy over to The Disorder. I wanted him to have Axel with him, so he went over there and I swapped him for Kuxir on the Org's side. As I came up with the plots and events, certain members needed to be on certain sides, which is why everyone is jumbled up.**

**Hope that answers it for ya'll, and enjoy the chapter :3**

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A week or two had passed. The clouds were still bleary, the streets were still empty, and the feud between the two gangs continued. A quarrel here, a dispute there, like always. Everything was pretty much the same.

That is, except for Roxas' and Xed's relationship.

As the days fluttered on, the two found more and more ways to see each other. Whether they could escape away to the boy's favorite rooftop, or meet up at the corner liquor shop, or even an inconspicuous walking glance down the street, they were determined to at the very least see each other, to share a special gaze, a special smile.

Their hearts began to crave the sight of the other. They'd find themselves thinking about the other when they allowed their mind to wander away from the task at hand. Though neither could pinpoint it, they each felt a specific connection, a certain spark that could only ignite when they were together. And the light that would arise was brilliant and mind shattering, absolute inner bliss and excitement that made every single worry and trouble vanish into thin air. They did not care that their friendship was wrong in the eyes of their comrades. They did not care that they could be, and might be, eventually caught in their forbidden act. All they cared about was the other half of that light that the other possessed.

And the two, as young and naïve as they were, did not realize they were each falling deeply in love.

000

"Where is he?!" Xradenom snapped, her face contorted into calm anger. She continued to gracefully pace the room, slowly, in a manner that made the other gang members in the room fidget uncomfortably. She had explicitly called for a meeting this morning, at 8:30 sharp, to discuss their plans on how to secure a certain store down the block from The Organization's influence. Everyone who was meant to be there was there...bar Roxas.

"I have absolutely no idea." Brixag barked, crossing his arms. Of course he had an idea, but his better judgment told him to keep it to himself. "He seems to be gone often nowadays."

"He probably went to go get a drink at the liquor shop, or something." Axel lied slyly, trying to cover up for his friend. He knew very well that he had left to go on a walk with Xed on the outskirts of town today.

Xenzio, with Ralexen sitting comfortably in his lap, tilted his head to the side curiously. "I don't think that shop is open at this time…" The girl nodded in agreement, but quickly stopped as the redhead threw the couple a threatening glance. They shrunk back slightly.

"I do not care!" The blonde seethed, stopping her pacing to glare daggers at the group of gangsters. "That is no excuse. Whoever sees him next shall tell him to report directly to me. Do I make myself clear?"

Everyone nodded silently.

Closing her eyes for a moment and breathing deeply, she forced herself to calm down to a more manageable level, and the meeting commenced.

000

"This is unsettling."

"Calm down, Xemnas. Please."

The Superior was standing by the window in the foyer, glancing out every few minutes or so, rather erratically. The words 'annoyance', 'fury', and 'frustration' may've well been written on his face.

The tanned man turned to look at Xaldin, a man with black, thick dread locks and sideburns to match, boring into his deep purple cobalt eyes, his own smoldering with anger. "The child is never around! When I need Xedramon, she needs to be HERE."

The burly man sighed. He hadn't the slightest idea of where Xed was running off to, either. In the past week he himself had only seen her twice, when he would normally see her each day.

Xigbar, sitting on the sofa, scratched his chin. "This is kind've odd for her. She usually loves hanging out with us."

Xemnas growled. "Ask everyone if they know where she is going to. And when you see her, tell her that I want to speak with her immediately." With that, he stormed out of the door.

Xaldin walked over to the other man, uncrossing his arms. "So, what do you propose we do?"

The older man smirked, a bit impishly. "_You_ do nothing. _I'm_ going to check something out."

The burly man cocked an eyebrow, but said nothing.

000

Climbing up the fire escape ladder, Xed smiled to herself, happily. Having come back from a 'date' (as they started calling them. This time they went on a walk together on the outside of the city), she felt as if she were on cloud nine. A strange thing happened when she was together with Roxas; a feeling washed over her, one of pure bliss and happiness. It was like some kind of high they could both share in.

It was still midday. Later, much later at night, they were planning on catching a movie at the run-down theater in the north.

She swiftly made her way up the cold metal, pried her window open with care, and climbed inside. Yet, she hadn't even had the chance to look around when suddenly a smug voice came to her ears.

"Sneaking out, young lady?"

The brunette whipped around to stare into the golden eye of Xigbar, hanging upside down curtsey of a low beam on the ceiling.

"X-Xigbar…" she stammered, nervous. Would he tell Xemnas about this?

The man grinned, which made her feel a little more at ease. "Calm down, girl. I ain't gonna bust you, or nothing."

She sighed in relief. "Thanks…but…how did you know…?"

He flipped down and landed on his feet, perfectly. "I may not look like it, but I was a kid too, once." He sat down on her bed, cross-legged. "Now then. Where the hell have you been running off too?"

She sat down hesitantly, twisting a piece of her hair between her fingers; her usual nervous habit. "I've…been seeing Roxas…"

His face lost a tinge of its humor, and became a bit more serious. "Xed…"

"He's not dangerous!" She added quickly, determined to defend their relationship as best as she could. "We've been hanging out for a while, now…he's such a nice guy…he really, really cares about me and I really care about him. He'd never hurt me…"

"But Xemnas would if he found out."

"I know, I know…Xradenom would do the same to Roxas…"

"She doesn't know either?"

Xed shook her head.

The man scratched his chin, thoughtfully, while his eyes darted around slowly. "Look…kid, I think you're getting into *hit that you don't need to get into."

"I know…" She repeated. "But…I really like him, Xigbar." She looked up at him, hoping that he could see her passion in her eyes. "I really do. And I want to tell Xemnas, but…he wouldn't understand…"

A chuckle on the man's part. "*amn right he wouldn't." He put his hands on her shoulders. "I ain't gonna tell Xemnas about this. If you like him, go for it. Just don't go blaming me if things go *hitty. Got it?" He said, finishing with a grin.

"Thank you!" Xed exclaimed excitedly, wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug, the man patting her back.

"Alright, alright, you know I don't do hugs." He chortled.

It seemed like things were going well…but they weren't.

For outside, a few feet under the fire escape's top floor, a blonde, spiky haired kid with devilish gold eyes was spying from below. He grinned, delighted from what he had heard, and dashed down the ladder and into an alleyway.

000

"HE IS WHAT?!"

"He's dating her, Bosslady. I heard her tell Xigbar the entire thing."

The blonde girl screeched in anger, absolutely furious. How DARE he do this to them?! Not only had he broken the code (which, surprisingly, didn't matter to her much), but he had formed a relationship with the enemy! The Organization! An alliance such as that could spill precious information and lead to The Disorder's demise! And with Xed of all people! She knew *amn well Roxas had had eyes for herself. And although she would never return such frivolous and useless feelings, she had HIS attention. But now, he had given that attention to her. And the simple thought of Roxas liking someone else other than herself made her explode with jealousy.

And the realization that she was jealous made her even MORE angry.

Xradenom growled, threateningly. Xoras, the previously mentioned spy, could tell by the look in her smoky eyes that she had something evil planned.

"I'll teach that little *itch to interfere..."

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**Ooooh….now we're getting into the plot/conflict!**

**And as you'll see in the next chapter, things are about to get a HECK of a lot worse….stay tuned!**


	10. Confessions and their Regressions

A pale hand laced with a tan one, Roxas and Xed walked down the darkening streets together.

It was evening, and the air was cool and refreshing, and a little wet; a sign that it would probably rain soon. The sky above was, as always, hazy and clouded, but tinged with the pinks and purples of the sun setting. By now, most people had settled themselves within their homes and out of the way of any nighttime trouble, so the roads were nice and clear and quiet.

Perfect.

The two teens talked about anything they liked, and nothing they didn't. Though, in truth, words were hardly needed. Just the other's company was more than enough to make the other smile.

"Roxas…"

"Hm?" He looked at her.

"Xigbar knows…" the brunette confessed, looking a little guilty. "But he swore not to tell anyone." She added in quickly, to soothe the distress growing in the blonde's eyes. Roxas looked away.

"I should tell my friends, too…"

She squeezed his hand gently. "You don't have to…we can keep this a secret…"

"But I don't want to keep this a secret!" He stopped walking, and turned so he was facing her. He laughed a little for a moment, exasperated. "This shouldn't have to be a secret! It's not fair…I don't want to have to keep you and how I feel locked up in my heart…" He reached out and gently cupped her cheek, looking her seriously in the eyes.

She reached up with her free hand and placed it over his own. "Neither do I…"

"I want you to meet my friends…" He smiled softly. "I want you to be a conscious part of my life, in the eyes of everyone. Regardless of what they think."

Xed smiled back. "I want that too…"

His sky blue eyes delved deeply in her smoky ones. "I…I really like you, Xed…" he could feel a faint blush crawl up onto his face. He watched as she blushed, just like him.

"I really like you too, Roxas…"

"Really?"

She nodded, shyly.

They shared a quiet, avid stare, and hardly noticed as their own simple attraction drew their faces closer. They barely breathed, they hardly moved, never letting their contact break, until their eyes closed all on their own as their lips pressed together in a kiss.

It started so sweetly, so gently, they barely moved, their hearts beating incredibly fast, until they opened up to it and allowed their passion to flow into the embrace. Roxas gently pressed her up against a nearby building, and deepened the kiss. In response, Xed wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him gently closer, while deepening her end of the kiss.

And they remained in that way, for minutes, or maybe even seconds, just lost in the release and realization that they were truly, honestly, in something very special.

However, despite their knowledge, they had been followed.

Xradenom watched the two embrace from the shadows, her face red with anger and her heart green with jealousy. It took every fiber of her being to restrain herself from lashing out and attacking, but instead turned sharply on her heel and walked off.

She had other plans in mind…

000

The meeting would start in a few minutes.

Xed smiled happily, her mind completely full of tonight and the kiss they shared. She could swear she was still blushing. A little while later, Roxas had to leave to get back to The Disorder, which was just fine considering she had to get back to The Organization.

Taking the main road would take at least 20 minutes, even is she did run, so she decided to use a back alley and cut through a cluster of buildings to cut that time down to about five minutes.

Weaving in and out of the alleys, she stopped every once and a while when she though she heard a voice. But when her ears couldn't pick up anything, she shrugged it off and kept going.

Suddenly, as she was about halfway through a long alley, she could see two figures turn in and start walking down it. She slowed down and looked at them with a little suspicion, but decided not to take any chances and go back the way she came and take another route.

But at the other end, two other figures were walking down towards her, too.

She bit her lip a little, but decided to keep calm. She decided to just keep walking, and excuse herself past the oncoming figures and hope for the best. As she made her way down, she kept her eyes to the ground, and judged by the sound of the footsteps and from what she could see of their shadows to judge how close they were. As they came close, they slowed down almost to a complete stop in front of her.

"Excuse me…" she trailed off as she looked up. She could barely see anything of the figures, but her eyes widened in fear as she noticed something frightening.

Both were wearing white bandanas.

She backed up, and tried to run the other way, but by now the other two figures, they too wearing white bandanas, had caught up and blocked her path.

She was trapped.

The brunette began to tremble a little, backing herself up against the wall. How she wished Demyx or Kuxir were here…

A cruel snicker, "Scared, are we?"

Xed looked up quickly to see a certain teen sitting on the edge of a nearby fire escape, her wicked grin and blonde hair illuminated dimly by the dull moonlight seeping through the fog above.

"Wh-what do you want, Xradenom?" the girl stammered, trying to sound unafraid.

She jumped down and landed with perfect grace, glaring daggers at her. "Stay away from Roxas, you little *itch."

"What?"

"Stay away from Roxas!" She punched her hard in the stomach. The brunette doubled over in pain, but was then punched in the face by one of the figures nearby. She yelped as she hit the ground.

"I-I don't w-want to…" She said, shakily. "I…I love him…"

Absolutely enraged, Xradenom kicked her in the ribs. "I. DO. NOT. GIVE. A. *UCK!!" She kicked her harder with each word to express her anger. "You stay away from him!"

Xed coughed up some blood, but glared at her. "N-no!"

All at once, the four gangsters leapt upon her, kicking, punching, all while Xradenom watched with approval. After a while, the leader stopped them, and grabbed the girl by the hair, wrenching her head up, hard.

There was the sound of scraping against metal.

Xed turned her bleeding and bruised face up, her eyes widening in horror as she realized she was staring down the barrel of a gun.

"Now then," Xradenom said, in an eerily calm voice, dripping with malice and fury, "you will keep away from my Roxas." She jammed the gun against her head, the later whimpering in pain and fear. "Or I'll shove a bullet up your brain. Understand, *lut?"

Without waiting for an answer, she released the girl's head harshly and dropped her back to the ground, as she instructed The Disorder members to follow her out.

She turned back once last time to see the brunette, curled up on the ground and sobbing with pain and fear, before smirking and walking out of sight.

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**MAJOR CONFLICT. NOW things are gonna get good :)**

**And sorry about that, Xed. You know I love you :3**

**Xed: -_-**

**…yup, she knows. ^^**


	11. Antagonize

Words could not describe the joy in Roxas' heart.

The teen practically ran back to The Disorder's headquarters, eager to tell his comrades about his amazing night. He still couldn't believe it! Not only had he finally worked up the courage to speak his true feelings to Xed, but also she had returned them!

And…they kissed.

They kissed!

The blonde grinned widely, feeling a blush burning on his face. Not like he cared, anyways. He could've been walking through a crowd of a hundred people and he still wouldn't have cared.

After what seemed like an eternity, Roxas made his way through the upcoming alley, and into the decrepit building where everyone else was. Upon arrival, he noticed that the few members there were not happy in the least. They didn't even seem relaxed, like they usually were at night. No one was drinking anything, no one was playing cards…no one was even talking.

The boy's grin vanished in an instant. What was going on?

"Roxas…"

He turned to the owner of the voice, who was standing against the wall. The redhead looked at his friend, worry and melancholy shining in his emerald eyes.

"Axel…" The blonde started, a little warily. "What's going on? Why's everyone so down."

The man turned away. "She knows." He answered, barely above a whisper.

The blonde's ocean eyes widened, mortified. "W-what?? How?!"

"Probably that *itch of a snitch, Xoras." He spat. "She left here earlier after yelling at all of us…I think she went after…" Axel trailed off, looking back at him.

"No…" Roxas could feel his heart stop, as his blood felt very cold within him. "She…she didn't…Xed…?"

Just then, the door slammed open with incredible force.

Xradenom stalked in, slowly, dangerously, a vicious hate smoldering in her eyes. She immediately fixed her gaze on Roxas, making the blonde shrink back ever so slightly – a force of habit.

"You little *astard…" she growled.

"What did you do to her?!" Roxas shouted, surprising the spectators still in the room. No one yelled at her and got away with it unharmed…

His words only enraged her further. "How dare y—"

"What did you do?? I swear to God if you—"

A fierce punch to the stomach shut the boy up immediately, and caused him to collapse to the floor. Before he could even bring his arms to clutch his bruising torso, Xradenom stomped on it with her foot, the heel of her stiletto digging mercilessly into his flesh. The boy grunted in pain.

"Listen," She snarled gravely, "you are to stay away from that little *itch, got it? I already told your little _girlfriend_," she put extra venom into the word 'girlfriend', "to keep the hell away from you, and if you don't stay away from her, I'll put a bullet up your *ss as well as your head. Got it?!"

She took her foot off him roughly and walked upstairs, still *issed beyond belief, leaving Roxas to get up shakily, his face red with anger and his heart white with fear.

000

"She's late."

"No *hit, Sherlock."

Zexion, a short man with slate, emoish hair and deep indigo eyes looked at Xigbar with crossness. "It was only an observation."

The Organization was gathered in the foyer, discussing tactics for dealing with The Disorder's antics. The meeting was already twelve minutes in, and Xed still hadn't shown up. Considering that she was never late for these things, it was a big concern for the gangsters, and a big worry for her friends.

"Where the *uck is she…?" Kuxir murmured from his seat on the sofa. He looked out the window, into the blackness of the night. In the reflection on the glass, he could clearly see the worry on Demyx's face.

This was driving him nuts. The boy ran a hand through his sandy, gravity-defying hair. He couldn't wait anymore. He needed to do something.

"Ugh! This is enough!"

The members looked at the boy in surprise. He wasn't one to have angry outbursts…ever.

Demyx stood up quickly. "I'm gonna go look for her! Who's with me??"

But no one had the opportunity to agree, disagree, or to even comment on his decision. For just then, the door opened with some difficulty, and the brunette staggered in – bleeding, bruised, and with a tear-stained face.

The blonde was the first to react. "Xed!!!" Demyx rushed over to her, followed by Kuxir.

The room broke out into a mass of shocked chatter, demanding questions, and varied comments, ranging from concerns to jokes to theories. Finally, Xemnas had had enough and stood up, everyone silencing himself or herself immediately.

"What the hell happened, Xedramon?" He asked, calmly, with a tinge of anger in his voice. He already had a guess as to what happened…

She looked around the room, noting how eager everyone looked to hear what she had to say. A few of the members already seemed to be getting *issed. She knew that, if she were to tell the truth about who attacked her and why, not only would she be in immense trouble for being with Roxas, but the blonde would also be targeted. She felt her heart ache a little. She would _not_ endanger him…

Xed swallowed. She had to protect him. "Some of The Disorder…they just…jumped me…" It wasn't a complete lie, but at least the two of them were safe. And that's what truly mattered. "I was on my way here, but a few of them cut me off and attacked…I don't know why…"

Xigbar growled, furious. "I *ucking knew it! Those little *itches are gonna *ucking pay!"

The room rose back into chaotic shouting and yelling, all livid about what The Disorder had done. Some began cursing them out furiously, others made threats, while others described colorfully what they were planning to do the next time they crossed paths.

The Superior forced the room to calm down again. "Everyone, I know this is disturbing, but we mustn't let this go to our heads…"

"What the hell, Xemnas?!" The one-eyed man shouted. "They just attack and you expect us to do nothing?!?"

A sadistic blue-haired gold-eyed man by the name of Saix spoke up. "I say we return the favor." He grinned wickedly.

The room began to voice their agreements.

"Absolutely not!" Xemnas boomed. "That is simply asking for trouble. I forbid such an act!"

The room began to protest, but the tanned man held up his hand. "End of discussion. We'll continue this meeting tomorrow. Everyone needs to *ucking cool off." He rubbed his temples and walked out of the room.

Demyx and Kuxir helped Xed upstairs, so she could rest and heal up a little.

"This isn't *ucking right…" Roxuld, a man with short, light brown hair and wicked amber eyes, snapped, shuffling the cards in his hands roughly. "This is messed up…"

Xigbar sniffed, angrily. "You got that right."

"I say screw Xemnas." Sauelex, a burly, strong man with strangely styled silver hair and sturdy gold eyes barked. "Let's deliver revenge up their *sses."

"I agree." Saix added in.

"Then let's get up off our *sses and do this." Xigbar stood, cracking his knuckles and smirking. He was certainly going to enjoy this.

"Now, hold on just a second!" Vexen hissed, standing up. "You cannot go and attack them! You don't even know who attacked Xed! You could go after the wrong person!"

"Who gives a *uck?" Roxuld sneered. "They're all bad blood to us. Even if one person went after her, their whole gang suffers."

Sauelex crossed his arms. "They shoulda' thought of that before they decided to start something they didn't want to *ucking finish."

Before Vexen could protest anymore, Xigbar, Saix, Roxuld, and Sauelex got up and walked out, with nothing on their minds but making the other side bleed.

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**It's getting real good, now :) **


	12. And The Blood That We Spill

Playful shouts and giggles echoed quietly in the dark streets of Destiny Island as a certain orange-haired man and a certain black-haired girl traversed the roads, under the dim glow of the street lights above their heads. The two were walking back from a simple date of a movie and a drink, both glad to get away from the tension of The Disorder for a while.

Xenzio took her hand and kissed it. "Did you enjoy yourself, darling?"

"Of course!" Ralexen answered, smiling. "Did you?"

"Any night with you I enjoy immensely." He replied, grinning. The woman smiled sweetly and moved closer to him, cupping his cheeks in her hands and kissing him on the lips.

"I love you, Xenzio." She whispered. He grinned and kissed her back.

"I love you too…"

"Aw, how sweet…"

The couple quickly broke their embrace and looked towards the source of the sound; they watched as four men walked out from an alley. Xenzio protectively moved himself in front of his girlfriend.

Another man snickered. "It's so sweet, I can barely *ucking stand it…"

As they moved into better light, the couple immediately saw the black bandanas.

The names and faces came right after.

"Saix, Roxuld, Sauelex, and Xigbar." The man spat, glaring. "What the hell do you want?"

"Oh, I don't know." Roxuld answered, teasingly. "Perhaps a little chat? A card game? Some *ucking revenge?"

"W-we don't know what you're talking about…" Ralexen stammered, frightened. Xenzio took her hand in his and squeezed it gently, to help calm her down.

"You dudes crossed the line." Xigbar said, taking his group closer to them. "We've always had a problem, but it was on the back burner, for now. But then, ya'll had to go mess with one of our members, and that doesn't sit well with us."

"It doesn't sit well with us at all." Saix snarled quietly, grinning wickedly.

Xenzio gulped harshly. "Look…we're sorry, okay? But we've been out all night. We didn't do anything!"

"Who gives a *uck?" Sauelex snapped. "This ain't a one-on-one kind've thing. If any of you mess with any of us, this becomes a gang-on-gang kind of thing."

Roxuld smirked, cracking his knuckles. "You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us."

"So we're just going to let your stupid gang know that." Xigbar said, grinning madly. "By rearranging your *ucking faces!"

Just then, the one-eyed man punched Xenzio in his face, sending him stumbling back. He would've fallen if Ralexen hadn't steadied him.

"We need to get out of here!" She cried, grabbing his hand and running with him down the street, which suddenly seemed darker before their eyes.

Saix ran after and quickly caught up, cutting them off and punching her in the stomach. She stopped running and almost fell over, but a kick to her face sent her skidding back across the ground.

"Leave her alone!!!" Xenzio shouted, shoving Saix back but to no avail, considering the taller, bulkier man was thrice is size and strength. The smaller man was punched in the face, causing a few teeth and blood to fly out of his mouth.

Roxuld and Sauelex had already jumped on Ralexen, punching and kicking and beating her up. She managed to wriggle out of their grasp and slammed her knee up on the brown-haired man's groin, causing him to keel over in pain. The silver haired man, enraged, kicked her in the stomach with enough force to break a rib. She screamed out in pain as he continued to kick and break more ribs. Xigbar went over and began punching her in the face.

Hearing her screams, Xenzio turned his head to see his girlfriend being seriously outnumbered. Ducking a punch Saix threw at him, he ran towards her and shoved them away, making room to put his body between hers and theirs. As they continued to attack, he used his body to block their blows and kicks from hurting her.

What started out as determination and resolve in his eyes eventually grew to pain and fear. His arms, aching and bruised, were shaking so badly it was very hard for him to keep his body propped up. But he knew that he couldn't let himself fall, for then Ralexen would be targeted again.

"Little *itch is trying to play hero, is that right?" Saix, who by this time had come over to engage in the beating, growled, kicking Xenzio in the head savagely. Blood poured out of a new cut over the man's eye.

"Fine. We'll finish you up first, then go back for your *itch!" Xigbar said, kicking him in the head even harder than his comrade, sending the man stumbling and skidding across the ground away from her. He landed in a heap a few feet away, shaking and trembling and bleeding.

Ralexen could only watch with wide, afraid eyes as the four men skulked over to her boyfriend with malice in their eyes.

Roxuld, having recovered, smirked devilishly. "I'm pretty sure The Disorder will get the message if we mess up your *hitty little face."

"Go ahead, Saix." Sauelex said, grinning wickedly.

The blue haired man pulled out his pocketknife and flipped it open, the blade gleaming under the dull moonlight. He kneeled by the fallen man, holding his head to the ground as he raised his knife.

The woman's eyes grew wider. _N-no…Xenzio…!_

Finding a little bit of strength within her, she shakily got to her feet, ignoring the intense pain coursing throughout her, and ran at Saix.

"Get away from him!!" She tackled him, having enough force behind her run that she knocked him away before anyone could stop her. While the other members attempted to pull her off, Saix snarled and growled with fierce animosity. Anger clouded his vision, which prevented him from thinking clearly…

…especially as he plunged his knife into her stomach.

Her body froze up, her blood running old, as the piece of sharp metal passed into her.

She stopped moving, stopped struggling, as the rabid man pulled the knife out and stabbed her again.

And again. And again. And again.

He stabbed her, over and over, the fury in his mind blocking out his other senses. He didn't hear his comrades' shocked shouting and curses, telling him to stop. He didn't see Xenzio's horrified and shocked expression. And he didn't feel the wet, sticky blood pouring from his torso.

Until all of that cleared.

Breathing hard, Saix shoved her off of him and stared at her rapidly bleeding form.

"R-Ralexen!!" Xenzio screamed, forcing his body over to hers, as he fell to her knees beside him and cradled her body in his arms gently. She already felt cold.

The Organization members could only stare, mortified.

"Ralexen! Ralexen! Please, sweetheart, love, please hold on!" he cried over and over, pressing his hand over her wounds to try and stop the bleeding. But it did no good; her blood continued to pour out between his fingers. Her body grew colder. She fell limp. Her eyes clouded over, lost their shine, and their life.

She died.

Xenzio sobbed brokenly. "Ralexen!! Ralexen, please, come back! C-come b-b-back…" He hugged her body close to him, crying harder and harder, his whole world destroyed as soon as she breathed her last breath.

The four men couldn't believe this. They never meant to kill anyone…

Unable to speak or act, they ran away as fast as they could, to anywhere, anywhere at all. Just anywhere but right here, at this moment right here.

And they left the couple there, in the street, in their blood, one dead and one dying.

Both were good as dead.

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**OMG…this was such a sad chapter to write :( **

**We're definitely making progress in the storyline…reviews would be really, REALLY appreciated. Thank you.**


	13. Such Sweet Sorrow

Ever since that night, things hadn't been the same on the streets of Destiny Islands.

Ralexen was the first person to ever die as the outcome of a gang fight.

Though both gangs had very violent and brutal encounters in their past, not once had anyone ever killed another, be it on the enemy side or their own. Not only did The Code strictly prohibit such acts, it was simply a line that restricted everyone. It was a line that didn't need to be drawn, or seen, or even discussed; it was a final conscience, if you will, a tiny moral implanted in each gangster's head, that kept them from taking the next step towards the darkness that tempted them from within.

And now that line had been crossed.

The citizens were in absolute fear. Less and less people would venture outside, especially at night. Parents would keep their children away from the windows. Couples would kiss before they parted, scared they'd never receive another chance. Everyone now lived in complete peril. And they were horrified at the trouble that they were sure was to come.

Both gangs blamed each other for the tragedy. They each believed that the other violated the code 'first'. No one was taking chances anymore. Xradenom would send her members to lurk around The Organization's headquarters, while Xemnas would send his to spy on The Disorder. Each desperately wanted the advantage over the other, to figure out their plans, their motives, and their reasonings for what they have done what they have.

However, one thing was certain: Roxas and Xed had something to do with it. They were not stupid. They did not know exactly how much contact the two had, or what they wanted with the other, but they knew the root of the uprising problems were their fault.

So, they were kept apart at all costs.

000

Although it had only been six days, Roxas desperately missed Xed.

He would sit on the sofa in the meeting room, the one placed by the window, and he would stare out with depressed, longing eyes, silently, for hours at a time. He grew distant and quiet as the days passed, often ignoring everyone around him, as he was lost to his own thoughts and his own heartache.

His redhead companion was seated beside him, like most days, attempting to talk to him. But, he grew more and more frustrated as the blonde continued to ignore him endlessly.

"Roxas!" Axel shook the boy's shoulder roughly.

The blonde blinked a few times, and turned to look at the man. "What is it, Axel?"

"This is ridiculous! She's just a girl! Get over it!"

Roxas glared at him. "She's not just a girl! She's…more than that to me…"

The man scoffed, and rolled his eyes. "You're like, what? 13?"

"I'm 15!"

"Whatever!" He stared hard at his friend, his jade eyes piercing though him. "She's just a stupid crush! You gotta get over this *hit!"

"She's not just a crush! I love her!"

A cruel laugh. "You love her?"

Roxas quieted down, his glare softening. "Yes." He answered quietly, seriously. "I love her. I love her a lot."

Axel's demeanor calmed down as well, as he saw the seriousness in the blonde's eyes. All this time he figured this was just a childish crush, or maybe a tiny relationship. "Really?"

The blonde nodded, and looked out the window again. "I miss her a lot…I'd give anything to see her again. But I can't go back to her room. I'd get caught for sure."

The pyro scratched his chin thoughtfully, as his brain quickly hatched a plan. Snapping his fingers, her exclaimed, "I got it!"

A raised eyebrow. "Got what?"

"How you'll see her." He smirked deviously. "You're not gonna sneak out anymore. And neither will she."

He then proceeded to tell him his brilliant plan. And with each new promising word, Roxas' blue eyes would brighten even more, in hope and anticipation. He wrote a letter for Xed, following each of the redhead's directions and handing him it when he was done. The man took off, leaving the boy to do nothing but sit there and wait until the right moment.

Roxas hadn't been this excited in a long time. He couldn't wipe the grin from his face.

000

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Xed looked up from her book at the familiar sound. She turned her eyes to her window just in time to see a small pebble hit the window with urgent strength.

A smile came to her face, one that had not been seen for a full six days, ever since she had been kept under guard. She had been hoping, wishing for Roxas to come by and see her, to tap on her window so they could talk, and then go for stroll in the dark streets below. Even a small glimpse of him would satisfy her. She just missed him so much…

Almost running to the window, she opened it and looked outside, hoping to see the blonde's mass of spiky hair and his bright blue eyes and even brighter grin.

But her heart sank as she saw spiky red hair.

Axel was seated on the steps just below the window, looking up at her with his signature cocky grin, in arm's length of her.

She quickly began to shut the window in fear this was some sort of trap, but he reached out and kept it open.

"Cool it, chick, I come in peace." He smirked.

"How can I be sure?" The brunette asked quietly, in case anyone was outside her room's door.

"'Cause, Roxas sent me."

Her heart ached a little. "Roxas? He sent you? Really?"

"Yup. I got a letter here from him." He held out a folded sheet of white paper to her. "It's for you."

She looked at the man apprehensively. After seeing nothing in his gaze change, she reached out hesitantly, took the letter, and opened it.

_Xed,_

_Go get some beer. There's some behind the old plaza._

_~ Roxas_

She looked back up, but Axel was gone.

The girl mulled it over, and without much more thought, she put the note in her pocket, and quickly went down the stairs and into the foyer. Before she could reach the front door, Demyx looked up from his seat on the sofa.

"Hey Xed. Where are you going?" He inquired simply.

"I'm gonna go get some beer. I think we're almost out."

000

The only thing behind the plaza was the old community church.

No one really went there anymore, other than the occasional homeless person seeking refuge for the night. Not only did people not have time for church, no one was very religious and diligent enough to go. It was built long ago to give people a sense of hope for their ever-bleak city. But that hope crumbled along with the building as the years went by, leaving only a decrepit, rotting building in its wake.

The brunette walked inside carefully. Being mindful of the chunks of roof and shattered glass lying on the floor in heaps, she wandered around slowly, eyes curiously and warily surveying before her. It was a little difficult to see, but as her vision slowly adjusted, she could make out tangles of plants and bushes that decided to grow in the murky, cool, and damp cathedral.

"Hey!"

She jumped in surprise, turning quickly to see a certain blonde boy sitting in one of the pews towards the back.

"Don't scare me like that…" She smiled and made her way over. The boy stood up and they practically ran into each other's arms, hugging tightly. They stayed like this for a while, before forcing themselves to shatter their embrace.

"Roxas, I missed you…" Xed confessed, looking into his shining azure eyes.

"I missed you too…" he responded, running his hands through her hair. He smiled a little, sadly. "I thought I'd go crazy if I couldn't see you any sooner…"

"I know the feeling…" She said, taking his raised hand in hers. "We don't have much time together. If I stay here very long, they'll get the idea I'm not just buying drinks…"

"Same here. But I needed some excuse to see you again."

She smiled. "I'm glad anyways."

"This is terrible…I hate how they're trying to keep us apart…" Roxas hissed, turning away. "This isn't fair."

Xed looked at him, and said gently, "They just don't understand how we feel."

"I know, but…they shouldn't be trying to crush this." He turned to look back at her. "They're older than us. They should realize that love knows no bounds…"

"Well…until they do, we should try to make the most of this." The girl leaned in a little, as the boy leaned in as well. "Let's try to enjoy what time we have together."

They moved closer and kissed, softly at first but then more passion erupted into the embrace. They kissed with abandon, purpose, knowing very well that it could be a while until they saw each other again. Hands tangled themselves in hair, tangled themselves with other hands, fingers stroking cheeks and cupping them. Eyes closed, eyes open, eyes half lidded, but all focused on the other, on this moment, never wanting to let to, to break away.

But eventually it had to end.

It was hard to say goodbye, but they promised each other to make this work out somehow.

And with heavy hearts they said goodnight, hugged once more, tightly, as if they were attempting to keep the world and the skies and stars from falling apart and crashing around them.

And then they parted.

000000

**Sweet chapter, kinda sad, but they'll make this work. Or will they?**

**Reviews would be really nice. Please?**


	14. Until Death Will We Part

A week later, there was a fight at a corner store.

If it were to be asked about, there would be a different story from each person. Exactly who was there and who was involved varied. Some swore they saw a knife drawn. A few swore they saw a gun. Others swore there were yells, and threats, and insults thrown around.

But no one could embellish and twist the outcome.

Two Disorder members beat two Organization members to death, Roxuld and another man named Alex, while one of the Disorder's members was badly injured.

The death count had grown to three.

And it was this that put the people into a panic. As the tension between the two gangs climbed higher and as the air grew thicker with the smell of blood, the people's fears increased alongside them. Things were getting out of control. It would only be a matter of time before things went from worse to horrible, and it worried the people incredibly, because they knew they had no power at all to stop it.

000

Despite the terror flooding the streets, only two had the key to dislodge it from their minds for a while.

Tonight, Roxas and Xed met again in the abandoned church under the cover of night and under another clever excuse. It was their fourth time here, and the couple had grown quite accustomed to it's rustic, dark charm. Roxas had even brought a radio from The Disorder's hangout (it wasn't missed), so they could listen to music as they talked and enjoyed each other's company.

For some reason, Roxas noticed the brunette was being unusually quiet tonight. Usually she was just as excited as he was, if not more. But instead of being her energetic, bubbly self, she sat next to him silently, staring at the floor with a worried, blank look in her eyes. Seeing her so unhappy made his heart ache.

Placing a hand over hers, the blonde looked up at her. "Xed, what's wrong? Please tell me."

She sighed. "It's nothing, Roxas…"

"It's clearly not 'nothing'."

"I'm just…" she looked up, locking their gazes together. "I'm just really scared…"

"Why?"

"This whole situation…our gangs are whittling down…" She looked down once more. "What'll happen to us?"

"Nothing, that's what." Roxas took her hands in his and squeezed them gently. "We're not going anywhere. No one can separate us. Everything will be alright. I promise."

Encouraged by his words, Xed turned to look at him. There was a little more strength in her gaze, but it was still clouded with doubt. "How can you promise such a thing?"

He smiled at her the best he could. "Because I can. One day, after all this *hit is over with, we're just…we're gonna go somewhere."

"We are?"

"Yes." His grin widened. "We're going to go somewhere, where there isn't a sky full of clouds." Roxas looked up, letting the picture develop in his head. "Just clear blue horizons and a bright sun."

Xed smiled a little. "And what would be under this sky?"

He thought a bit, and shrugged. "I don't know. What do you want to be under it?"

She thought carefully. "…a field of flowers. That stretches for miles and miles."

Roxas grinned. "You got it."

"And all we'll have to do is just lie in it, holding hands." Her smile widened, as she laced fingers with his.

"Cliché, much?"

"Hey, you said I could have anything I wanted."

The blonde laughed a bit. "I did, didn't I?"

The girl smiled. "Roxas…I wish things could always be like this. Just you and me, away from fear and danger. Together forever."

They looked into each other's eyes, their desire and passion apparent.

"Xed, will you marry me?"

"What???" The girl's eyes widened in shock. "Roxas, we're 15! We can't be married!"

A deep blush flooded his face. "Aw, *rap, that wasn't supposed to come out! I…was just thinking of it…"

The brunette smiled a little. "I'd have no problem marrying you when we're older…"

"R-really?"

"Mmhmm."

"Then, uh, let's promise it then." The blonde stuck his hand in his pocket and fumbled around a bit, before pulling out a ring. It had a simple silver band, with an oval-shaped colored stone attached. "It's not a real engagement ring, it's just a mood ring…" he blushed a little. "I saw it in a shop and I thought you'd like it…"

Xed smiled brightly. "Roxas, you're so sweet…"

He grinned and carefully slid the ring onto her finger.

"Thank you so much. I love it." The brunette cupped his cheek with one of her hands and kissed him, deeply. She pulled away and looked him in his endless ocean blue eyes. "I love you…"

"I love you too…" he responded, looking back in her stormy cloud grey ones.

Their lips pressed again, in a kiss that neither wanted to end.

000

The skies were noticeably darker. A storm was surely coming.

Back at The Organization's hangout, the gangsters were furious. They blamed The Disorder for the start of this entire feud. They blamed them for 'making' them kill their member out of hate and revenge. They blamed them for their two dead members. They blamed them for everything.

"Enough is enough." Xemnas growled, his usually calm gold eyes alight with furious passion. "This shall end by our hands and our hands alone."

In the hands of each member be pressed a knife, two knives, even three, to some. They all varied in style and make, but all were sharp and deadly and perfect for their current purpose.

"I officially declare this to be an all-out war between us and those *astards."

And every member cheered to that.

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**Oh noes D:**

**What does Xemnas mean by 'all-out war'? Who's going to be hurt next? Will anyone else die? With Roxas and Xed ever get their cloudless skies?**

**Stay tuned!**

**Reviews are love!**


	15. Our World's A Battleground

A storm was coming.

Thunder rolled among the deep grey skies in waves, echoing off the barren buildings that stretched upwards. A dull flash of lightning could be seen every few minutes through the thick, dark haze. The clouds threatened to downpour at any second at all, and pierce through the cool, stiff air.

Tonight, The Disorder decided to stroll around the city, considering the streets were completely empty in anticipation for the oncoming storm. They walked as a group at a leisurely pace. Some drank as they walked, some smoked, others simply talked and joked and laughed while some preferred to stay silent, lost in their own thoughts. It was a rare, uncommon moment, for the group to be relaxed like this.

A thick bolt of lightning illuminated the sky, followed by deep, bellowing thunder.

Tonight, coincidently, The Organization decided to take a walk as well. They all walked together, smoking, drinking, talking, silent, all together, relaxing after the weeks of stress that had been pressed upon their shoulders. It had been a day or so since trouble had presented it's face to them, and they were taking advantage of the rare peace.

More lightning flashed. More thunder clashed.

And then…they clashed.

Turning respective corners, they saw…

Each other.

At opposite ends of the short street, only a matter of yards as a buffer zone, The Disorder found themselves staring directly into the eyes of The Organization, and vice versa.

A dead silence spread.

The tension grew so thick it was absolutely stifling. All chatter stopped, all laughing ceased. All smiles faded faster than one could imagine.

"Well, looky here." Xoras snorted, smirking. "If it ain't the Organization *itches."

"Shut the *uck up, *itch." Kuxir snapped at him, glaring. The blonde glared back at him.

"What the hell are you doing out here?" Xaldin snapped at no one in particular, finishing his beer in one swing and throwing the bottle at the ground before them, the glass shattering in all directions.

"We were out for a walk…" Xenzio answered for the group, his voice not having the strength it had before his girlfriend was killed.

A cruel smirk on Lexaeus' behalf. "But we should just kick all of your little *itch *sses right here and now."

Insult after insult were thrown between the two sides, each getting more malicious and hurtful than the one before.

In the midst of the verbal war, Roxas and Xed locked eyes; their only source of comfort at the moment. The stress, fear, and panic shone though their expressions, but the simple gaze they shared helped to quell their distress and provided a tiny yet significant consolation.

The only other woman in The Organization, a blonde haired, sea-green eyed woman by the name of Larxene pointed an accusing finger at the tanned boy across the street. Roxas' eyes widened.

"It's all his fault things have come to this!" She sneered wickedly. "If you had kept your little *itch on a leash and not let him break the code, you wouldn't be in deep *hit!"

Axel glared daggers at her and prepared a rebuttal to defend his friend, but Xradenom stepped in for him, pointing an equally accusing finger in Xed's direction.

"This all is Xedramon's fault! And yours, respectively!" She growled. "If you had kept that little *lut out of our business YOU wouldn't be in the deep *hit you are in now!"

More arguments and shouts and insults arose, occasionally drowned out by the increasing thunder above them. The two teens could only look at each other, both wishing they could hold the other in their arms and comfort them and wait for this to all go away…

"I have an easy solution…" The Disorder's leader announced, reaching for her white revolver, never taking her eyes away from the brunette on the other side.

Xigbar's good eye widened, knowing what was she was preparing to do. He grabbed the girl and pulled her behind him.

"Don't you dare!!" He shouted, reaching over and snatching the black pistol from Xemnas' belt before the tanned man could even begin to protest. He brought it up and aimed—

_BAANGG._

A shot was fired.

_He didn't even get to pull the trigger…_

The man collapsed to the floor, blood pouring from the clean wound in his chest.

Xed stood there, pale eyes wide, blood cold and body trembling, staring in pure mortification at Xigbar's corpse before her.

Lightning struck again and thunder shook the skies and the rain dumped down upon them, as both sides charged towards each other screaming and shouting obscurities, drawing knives and clenching fists, and they clashed.

More lightning. More thunder.

This was war.

The sounds of flesh being pounded, bones breaking, skulls cracking, bodies being pierced, and screams of pain flooded the air and drowned with the downpour. The skies grew blacker, as both gangs fought blindly in the cold darkness. The only source of light was the lightning that ran among the clouds in short, violent bursts. Mixed with the water pooling on the ground was dark, fresh flood. Bodies fell to the ground, those still partially alive gasping and writhing and moaning in their agony, before falling limp and lifeless. The air reeked of rain and death. The gangsters were covered in blood and sweat and water but they were immune to the elements so long as their rage gave them the willpower to keep attacking.

This was far from over. And before it was, Larxene, Sauelex, Aruxmila, Xisa, Xoras, Xenzio, Mexdy, Aldix, Nevex, and Lexaeus would be dead.

This was the moment everyone had been expecting, and fearing.

This was the storm.

"Xed!! Xed, where are you??" Roxas chose not to fight, dodging bodies in motion and the ones on the ground, looking around desperately for his girlfriend. He narrowly missed a few wayward blows and a stab here and there as he tried with all his might to seek the brunette out. But the thunder kept drowning out his voice and the rain kept blurring his vision. And the occasional lightning only produced enough light to see for a few seconds before his world grew darker.

Eventually he stumbled and bumped into a body that had pressed itself against a building, trying to evade the nonstop fighting.

A lucky flash of lightning let the boy know that it was, indeed, who he was looking for.

"R-Roxas!" She stammered, relief washing over her.

"Xed!" He threw his arms around her tightly, hugging her close as she returned the embrace. Some how, despite where they were and what was happening, he could feel his heart warming.

"What are we going to do??" She shouted over the rain, thunder, and cries of the fighters.

"I don't know," he shouted back, "but we need to get out of here!"

"We can't leave! I can't leave Demyx and Kuxir here!" Her eyes were wide with worry and fright.

He locked eyes with her, sharing in her fear. "I don't want to leave Axel here, but they'll be okay, I promise! We're the ones that are causing this! They want US dead!"

"R-Roxas…"

"We need to go!" He grabbed her hand tightly. "C'mon!!!"

The blonde half pulled, half dragged her from their spot and across the road. It was incredibly difficult to see, that he was practically running blindly. They nearly slipped several times in the puddles of water and blood scattered everywhere, but they kept running, Roxas leading and Xed following, both desperate to just get away. To where? They didn't care. Anywhere but here.

As lightning flashed again, Xemnas caught a glimpse of the two running away. From what he could see, the boy was practically pulling her away from here.

And he'd certainly be *amned if he let a Disorder just simply get away with hurting one of his Organization members.

He reloaded his gun and ran after them.

000000

**OH NOES! D:**

**Please review :3**


	16. The Gun is Turned

The rain seemed to fall even harder, faster, thicker, than ever before.

The two stumbled through the watery darkness in search of somewhere safe, anywhere safe, some place to hide until everything blew over and the two gangs calmed down. As they kept moving, the sounds of the fighting were eventually drowned out by the torrential downpour and thunder, giving the couple a small sense of relief.

Being the leader, Roxas took them to an old building some ways away from the conflict. It was a few decades old; the city was planning on tearing it down soon so the space could be used as something else. Forcing the door open, the two teens stumbled in blindly, both shivering from fear, adrenaline, and the cold. Acting quickly, the blonde shut the door and locked it.

"R-Roxas…" Xed stuttered, backing away from the door, "I'm really scared…"

"I know…I am too…" He looked around to make sure they were alone, before turning his worried eyes towards her. Walking forward, he reached out and cupped her cheek gently. "We'll make it through this, I promise…"

The brunette nodded a little. "But…how?"

He sighed. "I don't know…but we will. Everything will be alright."

He kissed her, and she kissed back. They broke a few seconds later.

"Xed…we should leave. Run away from this for a while..." He looked at her seriously, his sky blue eyes full of hope. "When this all blows over, we can come back. Or maybe, we don't have to come back ever…"

She shook her head. "No…I don't want to leave Demyx and Kuxir here…"

"Forget about them, they'll be okay…they're all after us…"

"No, they won't! They know about us! They'll come after them!" She swallowed hard and forced herself to calm down. "We'll…we'll figure out something but we just can't leave them here to take the blame…"

The sound of glass shattering rapidly disrupted their conversation.

They turned quickly to see a heavy brick being thrown through a nearby window. It smacked harshly with the opposite wall and cracked. Through the broken glass they could see Xemnas, standing there with a gun in one hand and a brick in the other, looking around with a wild and dangerous look in his eyes.

"*hit!" Roxas exclaimed, grabbing Xed's hand and pushing her ahead of him. "Run!!"

The two immediately took off, running deeper into the dark, crumbling building. They could hear more glass breaking and more bricks thudding against the floor, each one making their hearts beat that much faster.

"Aghhh!!!"

A brick had come smashing through the window and slammed into Roxas' back, causing the boy to immediately collapse, groaning in pain.

"Roxas!!" Xed stopped running away and switched directions, running towards her fallen boyfriend.

Looking up, with a trickle of blood down the corner of his mouth and a panicked look in his eyes, he shouted, "Stop! Keep going!"

Out of nowhere, Xemnas was inside the building and pounced on the boy, striking him in the face with his fist, harshly, in the process.

"You little *itch…" the man growled with fierce animosity, punching him again. "You'll pay, you little screw-up…"

"Xemnas! Stop!" The brunette shouted, feeling rather conflicted. She loved Roxas but she respected her Superior. Who was she to defend?

Roxas growled and slammed his knee upwards into the man's stomach, knocking the breath out of him. Taking this small window of opportunity, he attempted to throw Xemnas off, but the man held onto him and rolled with him. The two began to exchange punches and kicks, blood and spit and sweat flying everywhere, all dirty tricks open for use.

"Stop it!" Xed grabbed Xemnas around the neck and got him in a chokehold, trying to drag him off of Roxas. But the man, fully enraged by now, elbowed her hard in the stomach, causing her to let go and double over. Equally as enraged, the blonde tackled the tanned man and punched him hard in the jaw, dislocating it.

Blood poured from Xemnas' mouth, and he glared hatefully at the boy. "I'll KILL you!" The man screeched in fury, pulling out his gun and aiming it at him. But before he could even get his finger on the trigger, Roxas grabbed the gun and obscured it with his hands. The punching and attacks stopped, as it became a struggle to see who could gain control of the gun. The two gangsters rolled around on the floor, slamming the other's head and body against the cold concrete beneath them, or into the various debris lying around everywhere.

Both were shaking and grunting from the effort, both desperate to stop the other from owning the gun. Numerous times the gun was turned between them, sometimes pointing at the man, other times pointing at the boy…

**BAAAANG.**

A gunshot.

The gun…went off.

Xed's heart stopped, her eyes wide with fear.

The two immediately stopped moving, each finding it difficult to breath.

Eyes wide with fear, the blonde looked down ever so slowly…to see his chest was covered in blood.

_Xemnas' blood._

With a sick feeling in his stomach, Roxas scrambled off of the man and onto the floor, his chest heaving and his throat tight.

Xemnas lay there on the ground, motionless and hardly breathing, blood spurting from the bullet wound on his upper torso. The crimson was starting to pool beneath him, and he groaned at the cold pain spreading throughout him.

"X-Xemnas…" the brunette breathed, unable to move. She looked up slowly at Roxas, unsure just what to think. She found that he was staring right back at her, with the most frighteningly terrified look she had ever seen.

Suddenly, voices could be heard.

_"I think they went in there!"_

_"I heard a gun!"_

_"Hurry up!"_

Mortified and not thinking clearly, Roxas sprung to his feet and ran off, fleeing the scene through a previously broken window, leaving Xed alone with the dying man. Kneeling by him slowly, the girl could hardly breath as she couldn't take her eyes away from his fading body.

The man turned his flickering amber eyes on her.

"X-Xedra…Xedra…mon…" he choked out, blood slipping out of his mouth.

She could only stare at him with a strangely blank look, as her heart beat even faster.

He weakly grabbed her hand, and, with his last effort, pressed his gun into it.

"K-kill him…"

Her eyes widened.

"K-kill h-him…don't…don't…bet-tray me…"

A few seconds later, the remaining, bloody Organization members entered the building and ran towards the scene. It was pitch black, and difficult to see anything, or make out anything. They could smell blood, though.

As lightning illuminated the dark expanse, they saw that their Superior was already dead.

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**Ooooh chilling, eh? ^^**

**So, where does Xed's loyalty truly lie? Will she kill Roxas? Or not? To kill or not to kill, that is the question…**

**Reviews would be nice…**


	17. Not a Love Story

The skies hardly lightened.

Ever since that night, both sides had decided it'd be best to keep to themselves, considering the fact that they each had been severely weakened by the confrontation. With The Organization having only seven members left and The Disorder only having six members left, neither gang planned on taking any chances.

Not only had the battle placed its strain on the gangs as wholes, but it also placed its strain on the forbidden couple's relationship.

Despite Xed's description of what really happened, Saix (who had taken immediately the role of their leader) would pay her little attention, and labeled Roxas as 'Wanted' by the Organization for the death of their Superior. If he were to be seen, he was to be killed on the spot. The rest of the gang either completely agreed with this motion, or agreed out of fear of what would happen if they didn't comply.

Roxas was also expelled from The Disorder by Xradenom's command, after she labeled him a 'traitor' to their gang. Axel attempted to get his comrades to change their minds, but their leader's mind was already made up. If any of them were to ever see the blonde again, he was to be killed right away. And if he ever came back to The Disorder, Xradenom would see to it personally that he would die.

Either way, the sad truth was that Roxas was in danger no matter what he did or where he went.

000

"What the hell am I going to do?!"

Deep in heart of the city, in a plethora of twisting, complex alleyways that somehow found a way to connect to one another, the blonde paced the cold stretch of concrete he had taken refuge among for the time being. His redhead friend watched him walk back and forth without purpose as he smoked a cigarette.

Panic wouldn't leave his sky blue orbs. "I can't keep hiding forever! I…I need to do something…but I can't go back…where will I go?! But I can't leave Xed here! But…if I go there I'll get killed! *amnit, if I go anywhere I'll get killed!" He groaned as he gripped his hair. "AGHH!!! I'm in some deep *hit, now…deep, deep *hit…"

"Calm down, Rox." Axel finally spoke up, blowing smoke out of his mouth. He flicked the dead butt to the ground, into a puddle of water left over from the storm.

"Calm DOWN?!" The boy spun and glared at the man. "You want me to *ucking calm down?!"

"Yeah. Getting all upset ain't gonna solve anything."

Roxas sighed in annoyance, but he knew he was right. Forcing himself to gain a bit of composure, he said, "Axel, I'm petrified, here. I don't know what I'm gonna do here. No matter what, I'm a dead man." He pressed his back against the brick wall and slid down it, into a sitting position onto the ground, diverting his distressed gaze downwards.

"Look, I know all this seems like *hit, but I think I have a plan." The man walked over and sat down beside his friend. The blonde slowly looked up at him.

"What's your plan?" He desperately wanted to believe his plan would work, but there was no hope in his voice.

Axel smirked coyly. "Leave. And don't come back for a while."

"…you're kidding, right?"

"I'm not." The redhead placed an arm around his friend's shoulder and shook him. "You get on out of here, and wait until this all blows over. I'll go get you when it does. And I'll keep an eye on your girlfriend while you're gone."

The blonde gave him a skeptical look. "I don't know…"

"Do you have any better ideas?"

"…I guess not…"

"Then it's settled." Axel pulled a small bag of Munny out of his pocket and handed it to the boy. "That's enough to catch a bus and get somewhere far from here. And you're paying me back."

Roxas smiled. "Thanks, Axel…"

The redhead grinned. "No problem. Now go."

Nodding, the blonde gathered what little things he had with him and ran off through the alleyways, deciding to make one last stop before he had to leave for good.

000

The brunette didn't budge an inch. And she hadn't for the past two hours.

Luckily, The Organization was more lenient and didn't banish her like The Disorder had done to Roxas. However, she had been sentenced to a lockdown. She was no longer allowed outside of their hangout, and her window had been nailed shut so it couldn't be opened.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, she couldn't stop the events of that horrible night from playing through her mind. From the storm, to the fight, to the building, to Xemnas' death… She couldn't help but shiver when she thought about it. Her former leader's words repeated over and over in her head, like a broken record.

_"K-kill h-him…don't…don't…bet-tray me…"_

She focused her eyes and shifted her gaze onto her dresser across the room, on the second drawer from the bottom.

That was where she put the gun.

Upon arriving back here, she shoved the vicious weapon in there and hadn't touched or even looked at it since.

Whenever she wasn't thinking about her fallen comrades and friends, Xemnas' last words to her, or that disturbing night, she would think of Roxas. Her memories of their time together would always warm her heart and bring a faint smile to her face, but instead, lately, it'd make her heart ache a little. She could help but feel guilty that, because of their love, all of this had happened.

But no matter what, she still loved him, and she always would.

That would never change.

_Tap! Tap! Tap!_

Her eyes widened slightly at the familiar sounds of pebbles smacking against glass. Finally moving from her spot eagerly, she dashed over to the window and looked down.

And there he was.

She smiled down at him, her eyes lighting up.

He began climbing up to the window, but she signaled him to stop and to be patient for a little while. Going back to her door and opening it she saw that no one was guarding the entryway. She didn't know why, but taking this small window of opportunity she slipped out across the hall into Xigbar's old room, grabbed a hammer and box of nails she knew he kept in the back of his closet, and slipped back into her own room again.

In a matter of minutes, the window was pried open.

"Roxas, what are you doing here?" She whispered urgently, watching the boy climb up. "It's dangerous!"

"I had to see you again…" He finally reached the top and looked up at her. "I needed to tell you something…"

From the sound of his voice and the somber expression in his eyes, she knew this wasn't going to be something good. "What is it?"

"I'm…going away."

She could feel her heart drop. "W-what?"

"Just until everything calms down, I promise…" he added in quickly, trying to make her feel better. But by the look on her face it didn't do very much.

"Please don't go…" she begged softly, reaching out and holding his hand. "Please, don't…"

He held her hands tightly in his. "I can't stay, Xed…" He looked her in the eyes. "I'll get killed if I stay here."

The brunette found it hard to keep her voice even. "Then…can I go with you? Please?"

Roxas bit his lip. Oh, how he wished he could just answer her yes! "No…it'd be suspicious if we both just disappeared. They're after me, and just me…if I left it wouldn't matter. But if we left…they'd come looking for us. They won't go looking for me."

The girl looked down, afraid that if she looked at him any longer she'd break into tears.

He gently moved closer and lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes again. "I love you, Xed. And I'll come back. I promise. And when I do, we'll leave together for good." He smiled faintly. "And we'll go find our blue skies and our field of flowers."

Their lips pressed together in a soft, simple kiss.

Breaking away, Xed sighed sadly, forcing a small smile that wasn't really true. "It's like a love story…what we're going through. Desperate to be together but not allowed to…"

Roxas looked into her pale eyes, sadly. How he wished this was only a fantasy, a make-believe fairy-tale. "This is not a love story…"

Nodding a little, she looked down. "I know…"

They kissed again, deeper and with more passion, afraid to break away and to acknowledge that this would be the end of this for what could be a long time. But eventually, they let go and shared one last look, one last gaze. They held hands for one last time.

"I love you, Roxas…"

"I love you too, Xed…"

They expressed their love one last time.

And as the blonde climbed down the fire escape and disappeared into the dark streets, the brunette could only watch him leave with a heavy heart, unable to stop the tears from falling down her cheeks.

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**Aww…sadness :(**

**I really love that line, though… 'this is not a love story'. Dunno why. And it's kinda ironic because this IS a love story. ^^**

**Reviews would be really appreciated.**


	18. Dancing With Death

**OMGWTFBBQ I AM SO SORRY! D:**

**School is a KILLER when it comes to homework, and it's really drawn away from my time to update story chapters :(**

**But I WILL finish this story, and all my stories.**

**This I most definitely promise.**

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Days passed.

Even with their numbers diminished, the remaining gang members fought as viciously as ever, their violent hate never cooling even though one of the antagonizers of this entire mess mysteriously vanished without anyone's notice.

In yet another bloody corner battle, two more members were killed: Xaldin and Marluxia. Both had engaged the other in the fight, and although Marluxia dealt the deadly blow, his own injuries proved too fatal and he bled to death before he could even walk out. Their deaths only enraged their comrades more, and encouraged more bloodshed.

With the Organization down to only five members, and The Disorder down to four, one would think they would come to realize that this feud was destroying them all. But they didn't, for they were blinded by revenge and hate, two of the most devastating emotions of all. They couldn't see past their feelings and realize that none of this was worth fighting for. The streets? The alleys? The courts? What purpose would they serve if they all died in the process? Pride and comradeship were self-conjured. They weren't prizes to be won by taking another's life.

With Roxas gone, the blame was turned upon Xed. Needing to direct their hate at something, The Disorder resorted to harassing the girl: throwing rocks and bricks through her window, waiting in the shadows for her to leave so they could attack, shouting curses and obscenities loudly throughout the night, and practically making her waking hours pure Hell.

Unable to run away or escape her torture, she had no choice but to hide in her room, trying her best–and failing—at keeping herself from falling apart.

000

"This is *ucking retarded!!"

The onyx hair teen paced back and forth, bravely in front of the window, glaring and the dingy, shattered glass that barely stayed within it's frame. The most current round of harassers had just left, after promising they'd be back within the hour.

Against the opposite wall sat Demyx, attempting to comfort the brunette seated beside him. "Don't worry Xed…they can't keep this *hit up forever…" he tried to assure her, lying through his teeth. He knew well enough how resilient The Disorder could be.

Just then, a large rock came smashing through the window. Kuxir quickly ducked to the left, out of the rock's path, and glared at it as it skid across the ground and came to a stop.

"*amn them…" He hissed, standing up and brushing the glass shards off his jeans.

"Don't lie to me." The girl hugged her knees to her chest, looking at the floor with a blank gaze, covering the fear they both knew she held inside. Along with the dread she felt, her heart ached knowing that Roxas was far, far away. She was glad that he was somewhere safe, but knowing that distance kept them apart simply crushed her. "They won't rest until I'm dead."

The two boys exchanged a worried look.

"Xed, you can't just give up…" Demyx pressed, giving her a comforting hug, which she didn't return. "Everything will be okay…"

_No, it won't._ She thought to herself.

"Hey…what's this?"

The two looked over to Kuxir, who walked toward the freshly thrown rock a few feet away from them. Picking it up and turning it over in his hands, he revealed a small, folded note taped to the other side.

"A note?" Demyx stood up. "What's it say?

"Dunno." Removing the note and opening it up, Kuxir scanned it over. After a moment, he made an angry face and crumpled the note. "Dumb *astards want Xed to meet them somewhere."

Confused, Xed asked, "Who wrote it?"

Kuxir scoffed bitterly. "Axel."

"Axel…?" The brunette's eyes widened slightly. "Give me the note."

Demyx raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Just give it here!"

The black-haired teen tossed it to her, and upon receiving it she opened it up with great haste and smoothed it out.

It read:

_Meet me seven alleys over in ten minutes._

_- Axel_

"I need to see him…"

"What the hell?!" The boys chorused in unison.

"Have you lost your *ucking mind???" Kuxir snapped at her, enraged. "You're just going to MEET him?! It's probably a *ucking trap!"

"I don't think so…" she replied calmly, standing up. "He came to my window once and gave me a note…he actually helped me meet Roxas."

"So what?" The blonde crossed his arms. "He helped you once, big deal? He probably got money out of it, or something…"

"And things were different then!" Kuxir added in. "There wasn't an entire group of people trying to attack you!"

"He might be trying to help me now." She looked at them hard, her gaze stubborn and her mind already set. "If I don't see him, I'll never know."

Demyx groaned, running his hand through his hair in a stressed fashion. "And what if he's not trying to help you, huh?" Worry flooded his gaze. "What if Kuxir's right? What if this is a trap and he hurts you? Or worse?"

"And what if this isn't a trap, huh?" She rebutted. "What if this actually saves me?"

There was a brief period of thick, strained silence.

Letting out a deep sigh, Kuxir grudgingly said, "Fine. But we're going with you."

The brunette smiled, and hugged her two friends at once. "Let's go."

After making sure the coast was clear, the three gangsters opened the broken window, quickly made their way down the fire escape and ran carefully off into the dark of night.

000

Following the written directions, they walked into the seventh alley from the building with caution. Xed lead the way, with Demyx and Kuxir following close behind. It was extremely quiet, which was unnerving, with only the sound of their footsteps on hard concrete echoing in their ears.

"Glad you could make it."

The three teens quickly spun on their heels, seeing a small, hovering burning light within the darkness behind them. As their eyes adjusted to the thick blackness, they could make out the tall redhead, leaning lazily against a brick wall and smoking a cigarette.

"What do you want?" Kuxir snapped, glancing around. "And did you bring any friends? Because we're prepared…"

Flicking his emerald gaze in his direction, he released a breath of smoke into the sky. Ignoring his question, he spoke directly to the brunette behind him. "I promised Roxas to keep you safe, kid."

Blushing faintly, she looked at him. "Really?" A small light went off in her heart, knowing that Roxas still cared about her, even as far away as he was.

Popping the cig back into his mouth and drawing from it deeply, he nodded. "Mmhmm."

"Then if you want to help, tell your stupid gang to lay off!" Demyx said, angrily.

"Can't do that." Axel breathed nonchalantly, putting out his cigarette against the wall. He smirked. "I'm no traitor, afterall."

Kuxir grit his teeth. "I knew it…"

"Cool it, *itch."

"Watch it!" he growled. "I'll *ucking rip that smirk off your face…"

"Kuxir…calm down…" Demyx said, putting his hand on his shoulder. The teen simply shrugged it off.

"You might want to follow his advice, mate."

They all turned to face the source of the new voice, as a certain blonde-haired man stepped out from the shadows. He smirked cockily. "It would certainly be a shame to have to teach you children a lesson about respect."

"I knew this was a trap…" Kuxir muttered.

"A trap? No, never." Luxord assured them. "I've had enough of this war. Things are getting quite ridiculous."

Axel nodded. "You see, I can't do much. Lux here, though, can certainly do something for you, girly."

"What is it?" Xed asked, a bit apprehensively. Luxord grinned a bit, wryly.

"Our Disorder wants you dead. Xradenom especially." He explained, pulling a small white medicine bottle out of his pocket and held it up. "However, they cannot kill what is seemingly dead."

The teens looked at each other, a bit confused.

"You see here," Axel chipped in, "Luxord is the king of drugs. You need a fix? He's the one you go to."

"So you're trying to get her addicted to something??" Demyx asked, confused.

"No, you little twit." Luxord snapped. "If she takes this drug, it'll make her appear dead: paler skin, cold body, hardly breathing. And it lasts for a few days."

"The Disorder won't go after her they think she's dead." Axel finished for him.

The brunette looked at the older men with suspicion. "How can I trust you? How do I know this won't kill me on the spot?"

"You wanna see Roxas again, right?" The redhead questioned. She nodded quickly.

"Of course I do! I love him…"

Axel grinned. "Then you'll have to trust me."

After a few minutes of hesitation, Xed reached out and took the bottle from the platinum blonde man's outstretched hand. She looked down at it, turning it over in her hands.

"Thanks…"

The skinner man waved her off. "Don't mention it. Seriously. If The Disorder comes after my *ss, I'll come after yours, got it?"

She nodded. "I'll take it tomorrow night…but…"

"Hm?"

Xed looked up at him with pale, pleading eyes. "Could you…tell Roxas what I'm doing? So he won't worry?"

Looking back at her, Axel could easily detect the desperation within her. Seeing how much she cared…it amused him. Perhaps touched him, somewhere deep within him. Roxas had caught himself a good one, and he couldn't help but smirk at the thought.

"Sure, kid. I promise."

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**What shall happen next, I wonder? Only I know :P**

**I hope to put up the next chapter soon, so please be patient and stay tuned, okay? Reviews are love :)**


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